To your first question, the status quo right now is essentially an unregulated marketplace, so certainly the answer is yes. That's easily done.
Your second question I think is a critical one. If e-cigarettes are regulated as a health product, we have standards and we have definitions of “drug” or “device”, etc., that are very similar in terms of intent, which establish that there has to be a demonstrable benefit that outweighs the risk, and there needs to be data to support that proposition.
That fits a therapeutic model. That model has been demonstrated to be quite effective with nicotine replacement therapies regulated under the natural health products regulations. I'm not sure that a harm reduction model, which is entirely plausible, and I don't suggest that it's an impossible role for these products to play, fits the same regulatory model as the NHP regulations. It may be something we have to look at as being a challenge to slot in somewhere else.
If we're looking at a less clearly defined benefit, then it becomes a model that focuses on controlling the risks, such as exposure to minors and so on, and it seems to me that might fit a little bit better under the Tobacco Act or similar legislation, perhaps the Canada Consumer Product Safety Act.
I think this is a critical consideration. What would be really unfortunate is to dilute the existing health product regulations, either the natural health products regulations or the medical devices regulations in order to force a fit for these products.