Curbing the epidemic : governments and the economics of tobacco control / [Prabhat Jha, Frank J. Chaloupka].

Format:

• Book
• Government document

Author/Creator:

• Jha, Prabhat, 1965-

Contributor:

• Chaloupka, Frank J., IV

Series:

• Development in practice (Washington, D.C.)
• Development in practice

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

• Tobacco use--Government policy.
• Tobacco use--Government policy--Cost effectiveness.
• Cost effectiveness.
• Tobacco use.

Physical Description:

xii, 122 pages : illustrations ; 23 cm.

Place of Publication:

Washington, D.C. : World Bank, 1999.

Summary:

• Tobacco will kill 4 million people in the next 12 months. By 2030 it will be killing 10 million people a year, more than any other single cause, and 7 million of these deaths will be in low-income and middle-income countries, where cigarettes were once rare. As educated and prosperous people abandon smoking, the practice is becoming increasingly concentrated among the poor in most societies. In the rich countries at least, its damaging effects on health are responsible for a large part of the ill health and premature death of the poor. Yet many governments have hesitated to act to control tobacco because of concerns about the economic effects of their action. For example, many policymakers fear that by reducing tobacco consumption they will cause permanent unemployment.
• Now, for the first time, the economic aspects of tobacco control are assessed in a single, concise report that reviews international experience. The report concludes that raising taxes on tobacco could save millions of lives while raising government revenues in the medium term, and that other, non-price measures, such as comprehensive bans on cigarette advertising and promotion, could also significantly reduce smoking. The analysis examines the effects of tobacco control policies on employment, and finds that most countries would not suffer permanent job losses.
• The report examines the costs of control policies, and sets out an agenda for action for governments, including help for poor tobacco farmers. It also points to roles for the international agencies in reducing the avoidable toll of smoking-related premature death and disability.

Contents:

• 1 Global Trends in Tobacco Use 13
• The Costs and Consequences of Tobacco Control 8
• Rising consumption in low-income and middle-income countries 13
• Regional patterns in smoking 15
• Smoking and socioeconomic status 15
• Age and the uptake of smoking 16
• Global patterns of quitting 17
• 2 The Health Consequences of Smoking 21
• The addictive nature of tobacco smoking 21
• The disease burden 22
• Long delays between exposure and disease 23
• How smoking kills 24
• The epidemic varies in place as well as in time 25
• Smoking and the health disadvantage of the poor 25
• The risks from others' smoke 26
• Quitting works 27
• 3 Do Smokers Know Their Risks and Bear Their Costs? 29
• Awareness of the risks 30
• Youth, addiction, and the capacity to make sound decisions 31
• Costs imposed on others 32
• Appropriate responses for governments 34
• Dealing with addiction 36
• 4 Measures to Reduce the Demand for Tobacco 37
• Raising cigarette taxes 37
• Nonprice measures to reduce demand: consumer information, bans on advertising and promotion, and smoking restrictions 45
• Nicotine replacement therapy and other cessation interventions 53
• 5 Measures to Reduce the Supply of Tobacco 57
• The limited effectiveness of most supply-side interventions 57
• Firm action on smuggling 63
• 6 The Costs and Consequences of Tobacco Control 67
• Will tobacco control harm the economy? 67
• Is tobacco control worth paying for? 76
• 7 An Agenda for Action 79
• Overcoming political barriers to change 81
• Research priorities 81
• Recommendations 82
• Appendix A Tobacco Taxation: A View from the International Monetary Fund 87
• Appendix D The World by Income and Region (World Bank Classification) 95
• 1.1 Smoking is increasing in the developing world 14
• 1.2 Smoking is more common among the less educated 17
• 1.3 Smoking starts early in life 18.

Notes:

Includes bibliographical references (pages 105-118) and index.

ISBN:

0821345192

OCLC:

41299267