JOHOR BAHRU, Oct 31 - The Johor State Health Department has issued 9,799 notices for smoking offenses from January to September.

Johor health and environment committee chairman Ling Tian Soon said the fines amounted to RM2.36 million over this period.

A total of 9,371 notices were issued for smoking in prohibited areas, while 428 notices were for offenses involving underage smokers.

Enforcement was also applied to electronic cigarette or vape users, which are becoming increasingly popular among teenagers.

"In Johor, no licenses have been issued for the sale of vape. Therefore, if anyone has information on such sales, please report it to the Johor State Health Department or the local authorities in each location, and we will take appropriate action," said Ling.

He spoke to reporters after the Mega Integrated Enforcement Operation under Act 852 here.

Meanwhile, 4,275 premises in the state have been inspected since the Tobacco Products Control for Public Health Act 2024 came into force on October 1.

This resulted in 415 notices for various offenses, including the open promotion of tobacco products and the sale of cigarettes to minors.

In another development, Ling mentioned that the Ubat Melalui Pos (UMP) in the state continues to receive encouraging response, with 22,781 packages successfully delivered free of charge to patients based on their health record prescriptions as of September.

He said the initiative, fully funded by the state government starting last August, involved an allocation of RM900,000.

Sultanah Aminah Hospital (HSA) Johor Bahru recorded the highest number of patients using the program, with up to 4,300 medication orders received per month.

Therefore, the HSA Johor Bahru Pharmacy Department will continue to encourage eligible patients to register for the program to help reduce congestion and waiting times at the hospital.

Other initiatives include drive-thru medication pickup services and medicine locker services in shopping centers to ease patient access.