The finance and health ministries did not respond to TBIJ’s questions.
Konuma’s actions have already taken a sharp personal toll. “I was unemployed for over a year, depleted my savings, and went into debt while growing my [complaints]”, he says. “Some may say it’s a waste of time, but I don’t.”
It’s easy to see why he thinks so: Konuma’s story has implications that extend far beyond his home country. Philip Morris’s plan for Iqos — a product that, by the company’s own admission, has not been shown to reduce health risks for smokers — is decidedly global.
Before the launch of Iqos in Japan, Philip Morris aimed to convince national regulators that Iqos should be treated differently from cigarettes and then use this as a “point of reference for other countries”. Ten years later, the success story of Iqos in Japan is undeniable – and the long-term plan appears to have been put into action.
In a wide-ranging speech in September 2023 laying out his company’s vision of a “near future where cigarettes are obsolete,” Philip Morris CEO Jacek Olczak criticized the various parties trying to restrict global access to heated tobacco products.
“Instead of implementing policies to promote adult smokers’ access to these better products, many global regulators are resorting to inaction,” he said. “Take Japan, where just five years after heated tobacco products were introduced in 2014, independent studies showed an unprecedented decline in cigarette sales in the country.”
Olczak said it was time for more countries to “follow the example” of nations like Japan.
Later that same month, his company revealed that preparations were underway to launch Iqos in the US.
The company has hired lobbyists in at least 19 states ahead of the launch, according to Reuters, with records showing the lobbying activity will cover topics including heated tobacco products and taxation. For those who have followed the company’s activities in Japan, the manual appears to be familiar.
Stella Bialous of the University of California, San Francisco, said it is vital that regulators around the world take note of Konuma’s revelations and cast a skeptical eye on Philip Morris’ claims about the safety of its products.
“I think it’s important to highlight,” she said. “Because there are governments out there that are perhaps vulnerable and could be seduced by some of these arguments.”
As for Konuma, he is equally strident in saying that the science behind Iqos is a major public health issue, one that must be treated with full transparency. It’s a cause he’s not ready to give up on.
“Now I can fight to protect public health,” he says. “Playing by different rules — outside the house of Philip Morris.”
