Over the past 40 years, Costa Rica has not had many smoking laws due to the influence of large tobacco companies on their population and government. The current laws were inconsistent and were not very well enforced. [2] From the 1970s to the 1990s, the country attempted to ban smoking. The first attempt to reduce tobacco consumption took place in 1979, when a law was proposed to ban all tobacco advertising. [3] They created numerous laws, including the Costa Rican Institute of Public Health of 1982, the Institute of Alcoholism and Drug Addiction of 1986, and the Campaign for Tobacco-Free Children of 1995, all of which had a common goal of working to keep people in Costa Rica healthy, which included deterring smoking cigarettes and reducing the risk of second-hand smoke. [3] Much of the work of these organizations to reduce smoking was not successful among the population, as large tobacco companies had a larger political presence such as Philip Morris International and British American Tobacco. For example, the 1992 bill that would have made jobs completely smoke-free and prevented tobacco companies from advertising cigarettes was weakened by these companies and led to a law in 1995 that allowed designated areas for smoking in workplaces and other public places and had weak restrictions on advertising tobacco products. Also in 2001 and 2002, the Pan American Health Organization worked with various groups to try to implement smoke-free workplace laws. [4] Although the program itself was not very successful, it was partly responsible for Bill 14,884 in the summer of 2002, which successfully banned smoking in the workplace. [4] This bill also called for more warnings and prohibited advertising of tobacco products. [4] The country has also implemented programs such as Courtesy of Choice, which has strengthened the tobacco industry.
[4] These laws made Costa Rica the most important country for fruitful cooperation between the government and the tobacco industry, which ultimately allowed the tobacco industry to successfully market and sell its products from the late 1980s to the early 2000s. I think this project is extremely important for the country. It has the full support of the Ministry of Health,” said Health Minister Daniel Salas. It is fully in line with the health alert we have already issued regarding the use of vaping devices, where we have even made it very clear that no study can show that e-cigarettes are a smoking cessation therapy.â In this context, we visit the important anti-smoking law of Costa Rica, which was adopted in 2012. Another factor that contributed to smoking in this country was the lack of doctors as positive role models. In the early 1990s, nearly one-fifth of physicians were current smokers and about 40% were former smokers. [2] These figures represent more than half of doctors across Costa Rica who have smoked cigarettes at some point in their lives. In addition, two-thirds of doctors who smoked did so in the workplace, setting a bad example for patients. [2] That being said, many people have seen their doctor use tobacco products, and in return, they have made it more acceptable to use these products as health professionals have done. Since 2012, Costa Rica has also banned smoking in most public places. The sweeping tobacco reform passed this year bans smoking in bars, restaurants, public buildings, casinos, bus stops and taxi ranks.
This has contributed to a decline in tobacco consumption among Costa Ricans, according to the authorities. In addition, the new law restricts the distribution and advertising of tobacco and allows manufacturers to provide at least 50% of each pack of cigarettes with an illustrated warning about the dangers of smoking. Future advertising on billboards will also be regulated. Costa Rica joins seven other Latin American countries that require warnings on cigarette packages and now ban the sale of individual cigarettes — a favorite item of most street vendors and shops. Cigarettes are still cheap compared to the rest of the world; Despite a recent price increase, a package only costs about $2.75, compared to an average of $6.00 in the United States. It introduced a tax of twenty colones per cigarette and banned any form of tobacco advertising, the use of misleading terms such as “light” or “mild” and the sale of small packs or individual cigarettes (setting at least 20 cigarettes per pack). Violations will be punishable by a fine of at least 180,000 settlers ($355). [7] Compliance with the law has been surprisingly high and smoking has disappeared in prohibited areas.
Several programmes and advertising campaigns have been launched by the Government and private institutions to promote smoking cessation, with very positive results. New Zealand has announced perhaps the toughest anti-smoking law in history, saying it would not allow young people to buy cigarettes for life. In the coming years, this boils down to a de facto ban, reports the New Zealand Herald.
