According to Focus Taiwan, the meeting addressed growing public concern over drug-impaired driving incidents, which have resulted in multiple fatalities and injuries. If the reclassification is approved by the Cabinet, severe penalties, including long imprisonment and potentially the death penalty, could be imposed on offenders.

The MOJ's decision was based on assessments of etomidate's addictive and abuse potential, as well as its social harm. Anti-drug information highlights that users of etomidate, often consumed via e-cigarettes, can experience impaired cognitive and motor functions, abnormal tremors, and symptoms that contribute to a "zombie-like" appearance.

Recent years have seen numerous reports in Taiwan of drug-impaired driving involving etomidate, causing fatalities and injuries. Initially classified as a Category 3 narcotic in 2024, etomidate was later raised to Category 2 within the same year.

The Narcotics Review Committee also decided to reclassify eight additional substances as Category 1 narcotics. These include metomidate, propoxate, butomidate, trifluoroetomidate, flutomidate, carboetomidate, methoxycarbonyl-carboetomidate, and allyl etomidate.

To mitigate abuse and societal harm, the committee designated two precursor substances used in etomidate synthesis-N-formyl-N-(1-phenylethyl) glycine ethyl ester and etomidic acid-as Category 4 controlled drug precursors, subjecting them to stricter regulation.

The MOJ aims to expedite the legislative and administrative steps before submitting the proposal to the Cabinet for final approval. In a related move, Taiwan's Legislature passed a bill banning e-cigarettes on January 12, 2023, which took effect on March 22, 2023.