Dropping bad habits

One of defence ministry, had made tobacco con- the toughest provisions of the law was the “Tobacco trol a matter of corporate policy. [...] Despite such resistance, the public has its origins in the country’s accession Since 2017, 50% of the surface area health authorities have not wavered in to the World Health Organization (WHO) of cigarette packages must carry warnings enforcing the law, backed by the presi- Framework Convention on Tobacco Con- about the dangers of smoking and graphic dent. [...] The law also provides control measures have been implemented bacco control expert at the State Research for a gradual increase in tobacco excise rigorously.” Institute for Health Organization and duty and the organization of medical and Leadership from the top has been Informatics of the Ministry of Health of other assistance for people wishing to quit. [...] In As regards excise duty, the finance The establishment of the national 2021, the figure is closer to 25%,” she says. [...] Zykov, who hopes to keep the share of such devices in the market- place to the minimum, agrees, considering the changes to the law to be “a very big step forward.” For Alexey Semenov, the big step forward was getting off the tobacco tread- mill altogether.