(February 18th, 2016, Manila, the Philippines and New York, USA) – Global health experts and anti-smoking advocates Vital Strategies (formerly World Lung Foundation) today welcomed the publication of the implementing rules and regulations (IRR) of Republic Act 10643 (RA 10643), also known as the Graphic Health Warnings Law. The publication of the agreed IRR removes the final barrier to implementation of the Law, which is designed to reduce tobacco use by increasing awareness of the harms of smoking through mandating the implementation of powerful, real-life images of tobacco-related disease on tobacco packs.
Sandra Mullin, Vital Strategies’ Senior Vice President, Policy, Advocacy and Communication, said, “We congratulate the government on this important milestone in curbing the use of tobacco in the Philippines and are delighted that it can now progress with implementing and enforcing large graphic warnings on tobacco packs from March 3rd. Evidence from around the world shows that most people are not aware of the true extent and type of harm caused by tobacco and exposure to secondhand smoke. The use of hard-hitting, real-life images of tobacco-related disease on tobacco packaging is proven to be highly successful in raising awareness of these harms, discouraging youth from initiating smoking and encouraging smokers to cut down and quit.”
Tobacco packaging in the Philippines currently features a text-only health warning label, covering just 30 percent of the front of the pack. RA 10643 was passed in July 2014 to mandate large graphic warnings, but the implementation of the Law was delayed until the agreement and publication of the IRR. Tobacco companies are now mandated to put images of people suffering from stroke, emphysema, mouth cancer, gangrene, impotence, throat cancer, neck cancer and premature birth and low birth-weight of babies of smoking mothers, on 50 percent of the front and back of tobacco packs.
Graphic Warnings Sustain Impact of Anti-Tobacco Campaigns
Graphic warnings on tobacco packaging is among the World Health Organization’s M-P-O-W-E-R (W=Warn) strategies to reduce tobacco consumption, alongside the use of anti-tobacco mass media campaigns. Vital Strategies supported the design and implementation of the Department of Health (DOH)’s national anti-tobacco mass media campaign, dubbed “Cigarettes Are Eating You Alive!” Launched in August 2015, the campaign consisted of 15- and 30-second Public Service Announcements (PSAs) that aired on national television. The PSAs graphically showed that smoking causes damage to nearly every vital organ and tissue of the body, using the images due to implemented on tobacco packs in the Philippines.
Mullin said, “The ‘Cigarettes Are Eating You Alive!’ campaign helped to raise awareness of the harms of tobacco and effect behavior change among Filipinos. When the same images are used on tobacco packaging, it reinforces the messages from the campaign and ensures they become embedded in consumers’ minds. This will have a powerful impact on sustaining and growing knowledge about the deadly harms of tobacco use and, alongside high tobacco taxes and other strong tobacco control policies, will encourage more Filipinos to cut down and quit – bringing the Philippines real health and economic benefits.”
The burden of tobacco use in the Philippines
The Department of Health (DOH) has identified tobacco as the primary risk factor in the Philippines for various non-communicable diseases. This costs the Philippines’ economy more than USD3.95 billion (Php188 billion) (Dans et al., 2012) in health care costs and productivity losses. The Tobacco Atlas notes that 40 percent of men and 8.2 percent of women in the Philippines smoke tobacco. Tobacco-related cases account for 19.6 percent of adult male deaths and 9.4 percent of adult female deaths – higher than the average in other middle-income countries. It is estimated that more than 71,850 Filipinos – eight people every hour – are killed by tobacco-related diseases every year. The Philippine Cancer Society estimates that around 3,000 non-smoking adult Filipinos die every year of lung cancer as a result of inhaling second-hand smoke.
The “Cigarettes Are Eating You Alive” PSA and stills and transcripts from the PSA are available upon request.
Research has shown that large graphic warnings on tobacco packaging and mass media campaigns are among the most effective means to encourage people to stop using tobacco. Hard-hitting graphic warnings and mass media campaigns can compel tobacco users to quit, increase knowledge of the health risks of tobacco use, and promote behavior change in both smokers and non-smokers. They are among the World Health Organization’s M-P-O-W-E-R (W=Warn) strategies to reduce tobacco consumption. MPOWER strategies are endorsed and promoted by the Bloomberg Initiative to Reduce Tobacco Use, of which Vital Strategies is a principal partner.
MPOWER strategies are implemented in the Philippines under the leadership of the Department of Health. The passage of the Graphic Health Warnings Law and the publication of its implementing rules and regulations, which will initiate large graphic warnings against tobacco use, is a major milestone in the Department’s policy and program reforms.
About Vital Strategies
Vital Strategies envisions a world where every person is protected by a strong public health system. Our team combines evidence-based strategies with innovation to help develop sound public health policies, manage programs efficiently, strengthen data systems, conduct research, and design strategic communication campaigns for policy and behavior change. Vital Strategies was formed when The Union North America and World Lung Foundation joined forces. It is an affiliate of The International Union Against Tuberculosis and Lung Disease (The Union).
For more information, please visit vitalstrategies.org or Twitter @VitalStrat
For more information or to arrange an interview, please contact
Tracey Johnston, Vital Strategies, at +44.7889.081.170 or tjohnston@vitalstrategies.org