Even the most ardent e-cigarette enthusiasts hardly ever claim that e-cigarettes are “medicine.” And, by conventional standards, they aren’t. While Chinese pharmacist Hon Li, creator of the first commercially viable e-cigarette, did hope to create a smoking cessation aid, the people responsible for the design and marketing of today’s products mostly aim to create things that are pleasurable and profitable. Since e-cigarettes contain a stimulant (nicotine) that’s associated with elevated heart disease risk, it’s hard to argue that using them could ever be considered “healthy” for those who do not already smoke.

That said, accepted current medical practice both among clinical professionals and the insurance industry suggests that people really should be open to considering e-cigarettes as a form of “medicine,” at least in some cases. This is already the practice the United Kingdom and the U.S. — as well as every other country — should consider the same.