Smoking Tax: Why is it Necessary?
Tobacco companies claim that the direct correlation between smoking and taxes prove their supposedly lesser obligation on the rise of smoking-related illnesses. They may claim that the epidemic caused by smoking is amply compensated by heavy taxes and it should be the government’s responsibility to provide aid to those who are inflicted with tobacco-related diseases.
Tobacco products are taxed out in various levels of production and consumption. There are excise duty taxes, value added tax, additional rate on the total retail price and the corporate taxes deducted from the company’s profit. All in all, the government collects billions of dollars of smoking taxes each year. In fact, almost 90% of the retail price of a cigarette pack goes to the tax.
Another point lobbied by tobacco companies is the fact that they provide jobs to thousands of employees and that pinning them down with heavy taxes may jeopardize employment. Anti-smoking advocates, however, argue that the groups of people employed by tobacco companies have various alternatives when it comes to finding work. They won’t stay unemployed and in the long run, they will still be able to contribute to the economy.
You will find that smoking and taxes are closely related once you get to take into account government spending on social welfare as well as its effects on the economy. Tobacco-related illnesses cost millions of lost working days. This involves both smokers and non-smokers. It cost the government billions of dollars annually to provide medical aid to victims of cancer, COPD, bronchitis and cardiovascular diseases caused by smoking. Sickness and invalidity benefits are given to those who suffer from smoking-related diseases may they be smokers or nonsmokers. Pensions and other social security benefits given to the dependents of a person who died due to a smoking-related disease have to be fully subsidized by the government as well.
If government officials really want to protect consumers, they would stop taxing smoking products and just ban altogether. The taxes collected don’t come near to paying for the loss of health and productivity the smoking causes.
As a new year approaches, it’s a good time to consider stopping smoking and taking up more healthy pursuits. If you need some help and inspiration, Quitting Smoking for Dummies
If you enjoyed this post, make sure you subscribe to my RSS feed!
Your general state of mind will fluctuate from happy to sad to irritated to depressed. You will experience all sorts of physical and mental nicotine withdrawal symptoms. Your tongue and throat may get sore. Your stomach may ache. You may experience heartburn. You may have difficulty sleeping. Some people suffered from flu-like symptoms for a few days after their quit day. 
