In a major update in the battle against smoking related diseases, an NHS regulator has paved the way for the taxpayer-funded health service to begin prescribing e-cigarettes as a means to help people quit smoking.
The move comes as part of the government's plan to make the UK "smoke free" by 2030.
It is thought 64,000 people die of smoking in England in 2019, with it the largest cause of premature death in the country.
The Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Industry (MHRA), is updating its guidance relating to medically licensed E-cigarettes as a tool for people who wish to stop smoking tobacco, paving the way to see them introduced as a legitimately licensed health-care solution.
The update could make England the first country in the world to introduce a scheme that would see e-cigarettes used as a fully licensed method to help people quit smoking.
The government has claimed that in 2020-2021 up to 68% of people who attempted to quit smoking used e-cigarettes alongside Stop Smoking services.
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."
How could you get an e-cigarette prescription?
Getting your hands on an e-cigarette prescription will hinge on a few factors, and most of it won't depend on what you do yourself.
As it stands, the biggest barrier is whether or not a manufacturer can convince the MHRA they can make a product safe and effective enough to be prescribed through the NHS.
All medicines that the NHS uses go through the same regulator process and e-cigarettes are no different - what the change of guidance does is provide the opportunity for companies to work with them to produce a suitable product in the first place—before this wasn't an option.
If and when a product receives approval from the MHRA, it will then be down to doctors to decided on a case-by-case basis whether they believe that an e-cigarette is the most appropriate way to help the patient quit.
Non-smokers are advised not to use start using e-cigarettes; under the scheme people clinicians don't regard as in need of quitting, i.e they don't smoke, will not be able to get an e-cigarette through the NHS.
Chief executive of the MHRA, Dr June Raine said: "The updated guidance on licensing requirements we have published today is a strong first step towards availability of safe and effective licensed e-cigarette products.”
A spokesperson for the NHS said: “The NHS will not be prescribing e-cigarettes unless Nice [the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence] recommends them for use.”
E-cigarettes will not be prescribed by the NHS until Nice recommends them.
