E-cigarettes could be prescribed by NHS in world first

Decision ‘has the potential to tackle the stark disparities in smoking rates across England’, says health secretary

Doctors could prescribe vaping to smokers who want to quit (Getty Images)

England could become the first country in the world to prescribe medicinally licensed e-cigarettes to cut smoking rates.

Fresh guidance from the medicines regulator paves the way for vaping products to be prescribed on the NHS to tobacco smokers.

E-cigarettes were the most popular aid used by smokers trying to quit in England last year, and health chiefs say they have led to some of the highest success rates, alongside local “stop smoking” services, with up to 68 per cent successfully quitting.

But the move could be controversial, after American scientists said earlier this month that people using the devices were 8.5 per cent more likely to relapse within 12 months and return to using their old cigarettes than people who quit entirely.

US researchers revealed they had found that as well as nicotine, e-cigarettes contain unidentified chemicals that could have health risks.

A separate study, in the UK, suggested that vaping could affect people’s lungs just as much as cigarette smoking.

Researchers at Manchester Metropolitan University Institute of Sport found both smokers and vapers showed similar obstruction of the airways in the lungs that can affect people’s ability to efficiently take in air.

However, experts in the UK and US have generally concluded that regulated e-cigarettes are less harmful than smoking. A medicinally licensed e-cigarette would have to pass even more rigorous safety checks, officials say.

Manufacturers will be able to submit their e-cigarettes to the Medicines and Healthcare Products Regulatory Agency to gain approval just like other medicines.

Earlier this month, the Food and Drug Administration in the US gave regulatory approval for the first time to a handful of e-cigarette products after banning tens of thousands of others from being marketed.

E-cigarettes are battery-powered devices with cartridges filled with a liquid that contains nicotine and flavourings. The liquid is heated into a vapour, which the smoker inhales.

Health secretary Sajid Javid, said: “Opening the door to a licensed e-cigarette prescribed on the NHS has the potential to tackle the stark disparities in smoking rates across the country, helping people stop smoking wherever they live and whatever their background.”

More than 6 million people in England still smoke, and they see their GP at least a third more often than non-smokers, according to the NHS. Almost 64,000 people died from smoking in England in 2019, official figures show.