AN ACT TO EFFECTIVELY INSTILL HEALTH CONSIOUSNESS THROUGH GRAPHIC HEALTH WARNINGS ON TOBACCO PRODUCTS

Sixteenth Congress
First Regular Session

Begun and held in Metro Manila, on Monday, the twenty-second day of July, two thousand thirteen.

REPUBLIC ACT NO. 10643

AN ACT TO EFFECTIVELY INSTILL HEALTH CONSIOUSNESS THROUGH GRAPHIC HEALTH WARNINGS ON TOBACCO PRODUCTS

Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the Philippines in Congress assembled:

Section 1. Short Title. – This Act shall be known as "The Graphic Health Warnings Law".

Section 2. Declaration of Principles. – The State shall protect and promote the right to health of the people and instill health consciousness among them.

The State shall protect consumers from trade malpractices and from substandard tobacco products.

The State accepts that, as a State-Party to the World Health Organization’s Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (FCTC), a treaty that reaffirms the right of all peopleto the highest standards of health, the Philippines is obliged to inform every person of the health consequences of tobacco consumption and exposure to tobacco smoke; to enact effective measures to curb and reduce tobacco use, especially among the youth; and to protect public health policy from the commercial and vested interests of the tobacco industry.

The State is cognizant of the Philippines’ duty under Article 11 of the FCTC which is to adopt and implement by September 2008 effective health warnings on tobacco products that should describe the harmful effects of tobacco use.

The State recognizes that based on empirical data, text warnings have been shown to be insufficient in conveying the dangers of tobacco products while Graphic Health Warnings have been shown to be more effective in conveying the truth about the dangers of exposure and consumption of tobacco smoke.

Section 3. Purposes. – The purposes of this Act are:

Section 4. Definition of Terms. –

Section 5. Coverage. – This Act is only applicable to tobacco products that are locally manufactured or imported and introduced in the Philippine market. Cigarettes intended or offered for export shall only be subject to the requirement that one (1) side panel of the mastercases, reams/cartons, and one (1) side panel of each cigarette pack primarily intended for retail sale to consumers, shall contain the following markings and information: "For sale only in ______", "Made under authority of______", tax number assigned by the Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) to the domestic manufacturer that exports tobacco products and fiscal and regulatory marking requirements of the country where the tobacco products will be ultimately sold.

Section 6. Graphic Health Warnings. – One (1) year after the issuance of the templates by the Department of Health (DOH), cigarette packages and other tobacco product packages, including package inserts and onserts, and any outside packaging and labelling, withdrawn from the manufacturing facilities, or imported into the Philippine customs territory shall bear the prescribed highly visible full-color Graphic Health Warnings, that shall have two (2) components: a photographic picture warning and an accompanying textual warning that is related to the picture.

Section 7. Side Panel. – Cigarette packages and other tobacco product packages found in the market, shall bear, on one (1) side panel, additional information which shall be issued by the DOH together with the templates in accordance with Section 15 of this Act, namely; additional health warnings, hotlines or websites for tobacco-related concerns, or tips on how to stop smoking. This information shall be prominently displayed and the text thereto shall appear in clearly legible type and in contrast by typograph, layout and color, without the use of any border or frame or any other design that will effectively lessen the size of the additional health warnings: Provided, That such additional information shall not occupy more than thirty percent (30%) of the display surface of one (1) side panel. This is in addition to any fiscal markings as may be required by other government agencies such as the BIR.

Section 8. Descriptors. – One (1) year after the issuance of the templates by the DOH, no cigarette packs or other tobacco product packages withdrawn from a manufacturing facility or imported into the Philippine customs territory, shall bear any number or descriptor such as, "low tar", "light", "ultra-light", or "mild", "extra", "ultra", and similar terms in any language that claims or misleads a consumer to believe that a tobacco product or variant is healthier, safer or less harmful.

Section 9. Costs. – All printing costs pertaining to packaging and labelling shall be shouldered by tobacco manufacturers and/or importers.

Section 10. Prohibition on Sales. – No person or legal entity shall sell or commercially distribute or display any cigarette or tobacco product without ensuring that the labels and packages, as well as any other container used in displaying the cigarette or tobacco products, meet the requirements under this Act. Manufacturers, importers, retailers and distributors of tobacco products shall ensure the removal from all displays of noncompliant tobacco products manufactured, imported, distributed or sold by them eight (8) months after the Graphic Health Warnings are required, as mandated under Section 6.

Noncompliant packages thereafter found in the market on display, for sale or distribution shall be subject to removal and/or confiscation.

Section 11. Prohibition on Obstruction of Display. – No person or legal entity shall obscure or cover in part or in whole the Graphic Health Warnings in the selling areas. The Graphic Health Warnings shall be prominently displayed whenever the said packages are commercially displayed.

Section 12. Liability of Manufacturers, Importers, and Distributors. – Manufacturers, importers, and distributors of tobacco products shall be directly liable for any violations of the provisions of this Act. In the case of a business entity or establishment, the chairperson of the Board of Directors, the president, manager and the corporate officials thereof, owner in the case of a sole proprietorship, and partners in the case of a partnership shall be directly responsible therefore and shall be made accountable when such officials directly participated in violating any provision of this Act. Agents/ representatives of the aforecited manufacturers, importers, and distributors who commit any violation of the provisions of this Act and. its implementing rules shall be jointly and severally liable with the manufacturers, importers, and distributors:

Section 13. Liability of Retailers and Sellers. – Retailers and sellers of tobacco products shall be directly liable for violations of Sections 10 and 11 of this Act. In the case of a business entity or establishment, the chairperson of the Board of Directors, the president, manager and the corporate officials thereof, owner in the case of sole proprietorship, and partners in the case of a partnership shall be directly responsible and shall be made accountable.

Section 14. Penalties for Noncompliance. –

Section 15. Graphic Health Warnings Templates and Timeline. – Thirty days (30) days after the effectivity of this Act, the DOH shall issue a maximum of twelve (12) templates of Graphic Health Warnings to be rotated, as well as guidelines with respect to the specific pictures, design, or content of the information relating to the Graphic Health Warnings, and other information that must appear in the tobacco product packages. The DOH shall consider the recommendations of leading nongovernment organizations (NGOs) that have established and proven records of dealing with tobacco-related diseases and deaths. All Graphic Health Warnings issued shall comply with the specifications above and must always present the devastating effects of tobacco use and exposure to tobacco smoke.

Under Section 6, manufacturers are given a period of one (1) year from the issuance of the initial set of templates to comply therewith. The initial set of templates is valid for two (2) years from implementation.

Within one (1) year from the effectivity of the initial set of templates, the DOH shall issue a new set of templates which will take effect upon expiration of the initial set. These new templates shall be valid for two (2) years and so on.

Eight (8) months after the validity of the initial set of templates, no person or legal entity shall sell or commercially distribute or display any cigarette or tobacco product without ensuring that the labels and packages, as well as any other container used in displaying the cigarette or tobacco products, meet the requirements under this Act, as mandated under Section 10 of this Act.

Section 16. Implementing Agencies. – For purposes of the implementation of this Act, the following government agencies are given these mandates:

Within six (6) months from the effectivity of this Act, the Implementing Rules and Regulations (IRR) Committee led by the DOH and the DTI, and to be composed of the Department of Justice (DOJ), the Department of Finance (DOF), the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR), the Department of Science and Technology (DOST), the DepED, the National Tobacco Administration (NTA) and the Department of Agriculture (DA) shall draft and issue the IRR for its effective implementation, after public consultations with stakeholders such as NGOs, farmers, and industry representatives: Provided, That the non-issuance of the IRR shall not prevent the coming into force of this Act.

Section 17. Creation of Oversight Congressional Committee. – A Congressional Oversight Committee co-chaired by the Senate Committee on Health and Demography and the House Committee on Health, is hereby constituted to monitor and review the implementation of this Act.

Section 18. Strict Compliance and Inspections. – Absolutely no extensions of time to comply with the provisions of this Act shall be granted to tobacco manufacturers and importers or any other affected party.

Section 19. Separability Clause. – If any clause, provision, paragraph or part thereof shall be declared unconstitutional or invalid, such judgment shall not affect, invalidate or impair any other part hereof but such judgment shall be merely confined to the clause, provision, paragraph or part directly involved in the controversy in which such judgment has been rendered.

Section 20. Repealing Clause. – Section 13 on Warning on Cigarette Packages of Republic Act No. 9211, DOH Administrative Order No. 2010-0013 and BIR Revenue Regulations No. 3-2006, Sections 18(e) and 23(a)(1)(b) are hereby repealed. All other laws, decrees, executive orders and other administrative issuances and parts thereof which are inconsistent with the provisions of this Act are hereby modified, superseded or repealed accordingly.

Section 21. Compliance with Existing International Conventions. – Nothing in this Act shall modify the measures adopted to give effect to the obligations of the Philippines under international conventions existing at the time of the enactment of this Act.

Section 22. Effectivity. – This Act shall take effect fifteen (15) days following its publication in the Official Gazette or in a major daily newspaper of national circulation in the Philippines.

Approved,

This Act which is a consolidation of Senate Bill No. 27 and House Bill No. 4590 was finally passed by the Senate and the House of Representatives on June 11, 2014.

Approved: JUL 15 2014

(Sgd.) BENIGNO S. AQUINO III
President of the Philippines