Govt urged to raise tobacco taxes to cut health costs

[Lite Beer]

Govt urged to raise tobacco taxes to cut health costs
The Nation

BANGKOK: -- An anti-smoking network is calling on the government to raise tobacco taxes and impose a special tax on cigarettes. Tax hikes should effectively lower tobacco consumption, network chairman Somsri Paosawat said last week.

The Health Professional Network for a Tobacco-free Thai Society Network's statement countered a proposal by the Thailand Tobacco Monopoly (TTM) that the junta end the industry's mandatory contribution to a health fund that comes from cigarette sales. The move would generate more revenue through cigarette exports, the TTM said.

Somsri said the government earned no tax from uncured tobacco sales but had to finance the medical bills of smokers, who were mostly poor. The network estimated that about 6 million Thais smoked uncured tobacco. She said the special tax on cigarettes should be raised from Bt1 a gram to Bt1.5-Bt2.

"Through these means, tobacco consumption will drop," she said.

Source: http://www.nationmultimedia.com/national/Govt-urged-to-raise-tobacco-taxes-to-cut-health-co-30243184.html

-- The Nation 2014-09-13

[shirtless]

It doesnt matter how much taxes are raised health cost will still rise, the money just goes into a black hole called the government.

[tominbkk]

In this day and age why do people still smoke?

[ezzra]

Cut health cost my eye.... new government, new taxes, and traditionally they go for luxury

items, like cars, liquor and tobacco... nothing to do with health, unlike Australia that a packet

of fags cost you around $ 20 now....

[alant]

The anti smoking lobby still push the stopping smoking will reduce health costs myth, oh well.

As for the argument listed above, I am at a loss to understand some of it.

[sdanielmcev]

In this day and age why do people still smoke?

"In this day and age?" Why not? PC is rearing its ugly head.

[PaulHamon]

It worked in Australia..

[halloween]

The chairman is wrong. Because the market for cigarettes is "inelastic" raising prices doesn't have much effect on sales in the short term, so the medical costs associated with smoking stay much the same. Such is the nature of addiction. But it does raise more revenue to PAY the medical costs.

if you keep increasing the taxes, eventually the tax raised exceeds the medical costs, and their are added benefits such as paying pensions for much shorter periods. When this happens, as in the UK and Oz, as Sir Humphrey Appleby said so accurately "Smokers are heroes dying for their country." (Yes PM, The Smoke Screen)

We should salute them.

Edited September 13, 2014 by halloween

[bangkokheat]

tax man, they are either very retarded or really believe we are all very gullible

[upena]

Better to promote electronic cigarettes

[doremifasol]

Just quit. It's doable

[Toknarok]

Raising the cost of manufactured cigarettes will simply force people, particularly the poorer citizens to switch to 'roll your own' or 'sai saen' as they are called here. This is crudely cured/sundried tobacco which is incredibly cheap here. A few grams cost about 5 baht. I've also seen it sold in bulk, how much for a kilo I'm not sure, probably peanuts. In Australia this tobacco is called 'chop'.

It's an incredibly harsh smoke, must play havoc with your lungs. A German friend of mine, not too well, off on a pension, used to smoke these fags. He got terrible sore throat which would not heal up. Doctor diagnosed throat cancer and said they would have to operate to remove his larynx. He refused the operation saying he did not wish to spend the rest of his life breathing through a hole in his throat and trying to talk by burping his words. 3 months later he was dead.

Those that think that smoking 'rollies' is safer that manufactured cigarettes think again. Old Holbourn versus Marlborough, read this link from Doctor Karl.

http://www.abc.net.au/science/articles/2014/07/22/4050221.htm

[Jedsada3]

I am a smoker but I find it ok if they increase taxes on the tobacco. They should make it also on the alcohol.
That would maybe serve to finance something more useful...

[Camelot]

This is good news for cigarette smugglers.

The government should have learned its lesson three decades ago when cigarettes were gradually taxed out of sight.

The black market took over with a major hub in Pratunam. It was always several steps ahead of police and Customs officials.

Even the excise stamps were often faked.

It led to an embarrassing climbdown as the government was forced to restructure the tax base to beat the "competition".

[Anon999]

Cut health cost my eye.... new government, new taxes, and traditionally they go for luxury

items, like cars, liquor and tobacco... nothing to do with health, unlike Australia that a packet

of fags cost you around $ 20 now....

Then who pays for the care of smokers with lung disease and drinkers with liver disease? So why shouldn't the tax be raised to help offset the health costs? Extremely high cost of smoking wouldn't stop those with enough income to pay and with alcohol then locally brewed illegal alternatives would benefit.

[Thai at Heart]

Where is it proven that tax rises effectively reduce consumption?

[Prbkk]

The evidence from other countries where this has been done indicates that it does not work. Most smokers will continue to smoke, paying the higher price even at the expense of items of necessity ( eg for their kids). Smoking is an addiction and needs to be viewed and treated as such.

Support programs for those motivated to quit would be welcome

[DerkMR]

Increasing taxes on tobacco doesn't cut medical costs but increases them.

Smokers die younger and faster so the typical expenses for high age diseases are not needed

Bye,

Derk - ex-smoker

[h90]

The evidence from other countries where this has been done indicates that it does not work. Most smokers will continue to smoke, paying the higher price even at the expense of items of necessity ( eg for their kids). Smoking is an addiction and needs to be viewed and treated as such.

Support programs for those motivated to quit would be welcome

Beside that, ban the chemicals in cigarettes. Pure tabacco is found to be much less harmful and addictive than the chemical mix in cigarettes.

[h90]

In this day and age why do people still smoke?

I stopped smoking a long time ago (and I don't like it anymore), but the question is why not?

Why do people in this day and age still drink alcohol?

Why do they drive big cars, if small one are cheaper and carry them the same

Why do they go for holidays, if it is at home nice and safer?

Because they like to do it.

[h90]

Increasing taxes on tobacco doesn't cut medical costs but increases them.

Smokers die younger and faster so the typical expenses for high age diseases are not needed

Bye,

Derk - ex-smoker

Specially in country with pension system. You die with 70 with an expensive treatment as smoker.

Or you die with 90 with an expensive treatment but maybe the last 10 years you aren't mobile anymore and need daily an expensive help.

So at the end smoker are cheaper.

[Thongkorn]

In fact it cost more in medical health care in any County, More than tax collected, Britain proves this. The cost of an operation and after care costs thousands, More than any Smoker would pay tax in a life time of Smoking,

Edited September 13, 2014 by Thongkorn

[Thai at Heart]

The evidence from other countries where this has been done indicates that it does not work. Most smokers will continue to smoke, paying the higher price even at the expense of items of necessity ( eg for their kids). Smoking is an addiction and needs to be viewed and treated as such.

Support programs for those motivated to quit would be welcome

Beside that, ban the chemicals in cigarettes. Pure tabacco is found to be much less harmful and addictive than the chemical mix in cigarettes.

That is completely bogus. There are no super addictive additives put in cigarettes.

[Thai at Heart]

In fact it cost more in medical health care in any County, More than tax collected, Britain proves this. The cost of an operation and after care costs thousands, More than any Smoker would pay tax in a life time of Smoking,

Where are u getting those stats from.

Despite the fact that they do absolutely everything they can to push everybminor procedure they can into being attributed to smokjng, the tax take still exceeds attributed cost according to the govt.

At 9gbp a pack, the tax is about 70%, so £6 every pack. Let's say £4 average for a lifetime at a pack a day, for 40 years it is

£60k. Invest that at 5% and see what it's worth. So smokers more than pay for themselves, plus they take less pension out of the pot too. Governments love smokers.

Diabetics, they hate. They live ages.

[halloween]

Beside that, ban the chemicals in cigarettes. Pure tabacco is found to be much less harmful and addictive than the chemical mix in cigarettes.

That is completely bogus. There are no super addictive additives put in cigarettes.

What he said was that the chemical mix is more addictive than pure tobacco, which has nothing to do with your Strawman argument statement.

[Fat Haggis]

In this day and age why do people still smoke?

Up to them, their bodies, same with alcohol, or any other drug that's addictive.

Maybe they smoke because wanking in public is frowned upon (in some places) ?? bit of a silly question there don't you think?

I know many smokers who actually like the taste and smell, personally I don't, never smoked, and never will, but it's their choice.

[Thai at Heart]

Beside that, ban the chemicals in cigarettes. Pure tabacco is found to be much less harmful and addictive than the chemical mix in cigarettes.

That is completely bogus. There are no super addictive additives put in cigarettes.

What he said was that the chemical mix is more addictive than pure tobacco, which has nothing to do with your Strawman argument statement.

The addictive part of tobacco is nicotine which is naturally occurring in tobacco. Putting flavours on it changes the flavour but that doesn't increase addictiveness of the product.

Unless people can get addicted to menthol.

[nisakiman]

In fact it cost more in medical health care in any County, More than tax collected, Britain proves this. The cost of an operation and after care costs thousands, More than any Smoker would pay tax in a life time of Smoking,

Where are u getting those stats from.

Despite the fact that they do absolutely everything they can to push everybminor procedure they can into being attributed to smokjng, the tax take still exceeds attributed cost according to the govt.

At 9gbp a pack, the tax is about 70%, so £6 every pack. Let's say £4 average for a lifetime at a pack a day, for 40 years it is

£60k. Invest that at 5% and see what it's worth. So smokers more than pay for themselves, plus they take less pension out of the pot too. Governments love smokers.

Diabetics, they hate. They live ages.

True. According to the NHS (who will of course be maximising the numbers) the cost of 'smoking related' diseases (which covers just about everything bar getting run over by a bus, and they're working on that one) to the Health Service in UK is £2.7 billion a year.

The government collects a tad over £12 billion a year in duties and tax on tobacco products.

If you find the maths a bit difficult to calculate, Thongkorn, I'll elucidate a little. The tax take in UK from tobacco, at 12 billion pounds, is a bit more than four times (4x) the amount of money that the NHS claims that smokers cost in healthcare. It is a myth that smokers are getting ill and dying left, right and centre. Most smokers live long and healthy lives.

Why do you think the Greeks, who are among the heaviest smokers in the world, enjoy longer, healthier lives than most other Europeans?

How come most of the people who made the Guiness book of records for being the oldest in the world were smokers?

In the murky world of Tobacco Control, Thongkorn, not everything is as it appears to be.

[victor70]

Cut health cost my eye.... new government, new taxes, and traditionally they go for luxury

items, like cars, liquor and tobacco... nothing to do with health, unlike Australia that a packet

of fags cost you around $ 20 now....

it is the same in Europ where goes our freedom?

[StefanBBK]

I am a smoker but I find it ok if they increase taxes on the tobacco. They should make it also on the alcohol.

That would maybe serve to finance something more useful...

And unhealthy foods, sugar, coffee, tea, the whole lot.