SINGAPORE \u2013 The authorities are looking to take action faster against young repeat vape offenders, including by detecting them from their first offence<\/span><\/a>.<\/p>\n Health Minister Ong Ye Kung said on April 12 that the authorities have noticed a group of \u201crecalcitrant\u201d young vape users, with some of them getting caught three times even while undergoing rehabilitation.<\/p>\n He said: \u201cFor this group, (we are) paying some attention to it, because you don\u2019t want a group of young, recalcitrant youths going into this, getting addicted, and then they destroy their lives.\u201d<\/p>\n The authorities have stepped up enforcement efforts against vapes<\/span><\/a> in the past year, following reports that a number of them were laced with drugs.<\/p>\n Asked about the vaping situation here with more stringent laws to kick in on May 1<\/span><\/a>, Mr Ong said the temporary measures have worked for the majority and that recalcitrant offenders were expected.<\/p>\n But this group of young repeat offenders was of particular concern, he said while speaking to local media on the sidelines of a brisk walking event in Sembawang Central<\/span><\/a> on April 12.<\/p>\n He listed current protocols whereby action is escalated each time a person is caught with vapes laced with etomidate, an anaesthetic agent.<\/p>\n First-time offenders are usually issued a fine or sent to rehabilitation while those caught a second time are sent for a urine test.<\/p>\n Those caught a third time can be sent to a drug rehabilitation centre.<\/p>\n But the authorities are now looking at how they can escalate and take firmer action faster, such as by detecting potential repeat offenders from the first offence, said Mr Ong.<\/p>\n He said: \u201cThat way, I think we nip the problem in the bud. These are operational issues that are still unfolding and we are still improving.\u201d<\/p>\n His comments come less than three weeks before May 1, when the new anti-vaping laws under the Tobacco and Vaporisers Control Act kick in.<\/p>\n The laws were passed in March, and will see vape users face fines of up to $10,000, which is five times the current maximum of $2,000.<\/p>\n Vaping was banned in Singapore in 2018. <\/p>\n In 2025, the authorities intensified their crackdown after reports of people using Kpods<\/span><\/a>, which are etomidate-laced vapes.<\/p>\n Kpod users were seen in public behaving ike \u201czombies\u201d, suffering from seizures and psychotic episodes.<\/p>\n This led to The Straits Times launching its anti-vaping campaign<\/span><\/a>, Vaping: The Invisible Crisis, on July 13, 2025, to raise awareness of the scourge.<\/p>\n <\/a><\/figure>\n In his National Day Rally speech on Aug 17, 2025, Prime Minister Lawrence Wong said vaping would be treated as a drug issue<\/span><\/a>.<\/p>\n<\/picture><\/div>\n