Summarised by Centrist
The government is ramping up efforts to achieve its Smokefree 2025 goal by offering free vaping starter kits to adult smokers through stop-smoking services.
From next week, these services will provide kits including a vape device and a month’s supply of nicotine pods, with ongoing support over three months.
Associate Health Minister Casey Costello said “We know that more people try to quit over Christmas and New Year.” She argued that those using smoking cessation services are four times more likely to succeed.
The government views vaping as a less harmful alternative to smoking. “It’s not completely harm-free,” said Action for Smokefree 2025 director Ben Youdan, “but if you’re a smoker and you switch to vaping, you can massively reduce the risk of getting sick and dying as a consequence of tobacco use.”
The initiative also includes a new campaign, That’s Us, Smokefree 2025, developed by Hāpai te Hauora, targeting key audiences via social media and local networks.
The objective is for the smoking rate to fall below 5% by the end of 2025.
