Panama’s e-cig ban unconstitutional and violates health rights, claims lawsuit

Panama’s ban on the use, sale and import of e-cigarettes is unconstitutional, according to claims made by the Panama Association for the Reduction of Damage by Tobacco Use (ARDTP) in a lawsuit presented to the Central American country’s Supreme Court.

Many of the association’s arguments concern technicalities relating to the parliamentary process. But it also contends that Panamanians’ health rights are violated by Law 315, the ban introduced in 2022, because it denies citizens access to nicotine and tobacco alternatives that are less damaging to their health than traditional cigarettes.