Australia has today become the first country to ban the sale of vapes outside pharmacies.
The domestic manufacture, supply, commercial possession and advertisement of disposable and non-therapeutic vapes are banned under the strict new rules.
Vapes will now only be available to buy legally behind the counter at a pharmacy - after a consultation with the pharmacists on their ‘risks.’
Nicotine concentrations and dispensing quantities will be tightly controlled, vapes will be in plain packaging, and flavours will be restricted to tobacco, menthol and mint.
Adults currently need to get a prescription from their GP to buy a therapeutic vape in Australia - but only until October, after which only children will need a prescription.
The latest reforms follow the first tranche of legislation in March which banned the importation of vapes unless the importer has a licence and permit.
The original plan was to make vapes available to buy only under prescription, but last week the ruling Labour party watered down the legislation to gain the support of the Green party in the Senate.
Backlash from pharmacies
However, several of Australia's largest pharmacy brands have said they will NOT stock vapes once their sale is outlawed outside of chemists, and the prescription requirement for adults is dropped.
In communications with their stakeholders, TerryWhite Chemmart, Priceline Pharmacy, National Pharmacies in South Australia and 777 Group in West Australia all voiced strong disagreement with new laws allowing the sale of vapes without prescriptions.
The Pharmacy Guild of Australia said in a statement that Blooms and thousands of independent pharmacies had also opposed the government's deal with the Greens to open access for adults from October.
Online pharmacy Chemist Warehouse has said it is still looking at the implications of the decision and seeking more information on how it will work.
While those big-name pharmacies have indicated they will not be moving to sell vapes, franchisors under the brands are technically able to make an independent decision to do so.
Many pharmacies under those brands already supply vapes, or are licensed to do so. The key dispute raised by them is the "down scheduling" of vapes in October from requiring scripts to being available behind the counter for adults once they have had a conversation with their pharmacist.
Health Minister Mark Butler has said pharmacies would not be forced to stock vapes, and the government did not expect that all pharmacies would.
The new vaping rules - among the harshest in the world - have already led to a sharp rise in violent turf wars over the trade of black market vapes, with dozens of tobacco shops set alight.
‘Dysfunctional policy’
Last week, the Australasian Association of Convenience Stores (AACS)
branded the latest reforms “dysfunctional policy”.
The organisation said it would support a tax-and-regulate scheme similar to that for tobacco, which would make vapes available from places like service stations or convenience stores.
Theo Foukkare, CEO of the AACS, warned the government’s new laws would create “an out-of-control black market.”
