On the morning of November 12, Minister of Health Dao Hong Lan continued to answer questions from National Assembly deputies.
Delegate Luu Van Duc (Dak Lak Delegation) raised the issue that in recent years, the situation of selling imported cosmetics and functional foods has been rampant in the market, even in ethnic minority areas, remote areas, seriously affecting people's lives and health, and affecting social order and security.
Delegates asked the minister, as the state management agency for the industry, what is his responsibility in management and what are the solutions to overcome this in the coming time?
Minister of Health Dao Hong Lan said that according to current regulations, cosmetics and functional foods are managed according to the mechanism of post-inspection, product declaration, and post-market inspection. With this mechanism, organizations and individuals must be responsible for bringing products to the market, registering their business with a cosmetics business unit, and declaring products to the competent State agency (Ministry of Health or Department of Health depending on the type of product).
The management agency will conduct post-sale inspections and penalize organizations and individuals who violate the law. Based on the law on commerce and the law on consumer rights protection, the Ministry of Industry and Trade has submitted to the Government regulations on administrative sanctions for violations in commercial activities of manufacturing and trading counterfeit and prohibited goods and to protect consumer rights, including definitions related to smuggled goods.
The Minister said that for products that have the phenomenon of circumventing the law, for example, selling on websites, e-commerce, or organizing seminars to deceive consumers, especially the elderly, it is necessary to continue to improve the legal system for managing functional cosmetics and cosmetics in the direction of more strictly regulating business conditions and increasing penalties for violations.
Along with that, promote the activities of Steering Committee 389 and related organizations in inspecting and preventing illegal circulation of this item on the market.
Promote the role of the Vietnam Fatherland Front, the Consumer Protection Association, especially local authorities to detect violations and handle them according to regulations; continue to strengthen communication and warning work for consumers, raise awareness, do not buy fake products...
