Mexico’s Revision of the General Law on Tobacco Control Will Drive Down Tobacco Consumption and Protect Nearly 130 Million People
Statement of Patricia Sosa, Director of Latin American and the Caribbean Programs, Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids
December 15, 2021
WASHINGTON, D.C. – Yesterday, the Senate of the Republic of Mexico approved amendments to the General Law on Tobacco Control that will restrict Big Tobacco’s ability to advertise its deadly products and protect Mexicans, particularly youth, from the dangers of secondhand smoke.
The amendments include a complete ban on tobacco advertising, promotion and sponsorship. They also prohibit smoking – including the use of electronic cigarettes or heated tobacco products – in any indoor public spaces, making the Mexican tobacco control law in compliance with the World Health Organization Framework Convention on Tobacco Control, which Mexico ratified in 2004.
The Senate vote marks a historic moment for Mexico and Latin America. Once the law is referred to the President and published, Mexico will become 100 percent smoke-free and join a community of 23 countries in the Americas that entirely ban indoor smoking, protecting more than 500 million people from secondhand smoke in total.
The Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids commends Mexican tobacco control activists for their passion and unyielding advocacy efforts to close the loopholes of the General Law on Tobacco Control. We applaud President Andrés Manuel López Obrador and the Head of the Undersecretariat of Prevention and Health Promotion at the Mexican Secretariat of Health, Dr. Hugo López-Gatell, for playing a pivotal role in the approval of the reform, and all the deputies, senators and government officials for protecting the health of their people and standing up to the tobacco industry’s persistent interference.
