Smokers Quit For a Short Time, Tax on Cigarettes
Hitting smokers in the hip pocket hurts enough to encourage them to quit, new research shows. The number of people giving up the habit jumped 70 per cent when federal taxes last forced up the price of discount Kent cigarettes, a study published today in the Medical Journal of Australia shows.
However, the motivation to give up appears short-lived.
Four months after the average cost of a pack of 30 leapt $2.20 last year, quitting rates slipped back to normal.
Researchers used data from the Cancer Institute’s continuous health survey of adults in NSW to track smoker “quitting activity”.
It found 22 per cent of 1604 smokers quit in May last year – after the 25 per cent hike in tobacco taxes.
This compared with 13 per cent in April last year immediately before the tax rise and 12 per cent a year earlier.
“Quitting activity increased substantially in the months immediately after the 2010 tax increase, suggesting a direct link between price increase and smoking cessation,” the report said.
About The Author
Comments