Evaluating Increasing the Excise tax on Cigarettes by 50 Cents per Pack and the Impact on Physician

According to the Congressional Budget Office, the 17th health option for reducing the deficit is to increase the excise tax on cigarettes by 50 cents per pack (“Options for Reducing the Deficit: 2017 to 2026”, 2016, p. 267-268). According to this article, the impact on the deficit would be a decrease of $35 billion, a revenue increase of $34 billion and outlays would decline by almost $1 billion (“Options for Reducing the Deficit: 2017 to 2026”, 2016, p. 267). The change will not only impact the deficit but will impact the health care industry as well. Physician offices may not see the impact of this change immediately, but in the long run, a change will happen. The proposed change will help a couple of ways and they will impact the health care industry.

The first change that would be noted is the number of smokers will decrease, an estimated 3% according to Congressional Budget Office (“Options for Reducing the Deficit: 2017 to 2026”, 2016, p. 267). This will help drive the number of long-term smokers down. Smoking leads to a lot of health problems to the smoker but also people exposed to second-hand smoke. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) there are increased health risks for smokers and smoking causes 1 in 5 deaths in the U.S. each year. The health risks of smoking include heart disease, stroke, lung disease, cancers, and much more (“Health Effects of Cigarette Smoking | CDC”, 2018). The CDC estimates that the U.S. spends more than $300 billion a year on illnesses caused by smoking (“Economic Trends in Tobacco | Smoking & Tobacco Use | CDC”, 2019).

Physician offices will not see an immediate change from this option. The change will be in the long-term. Over time, fewer people will be affected by cigarette smoke and will have less cigarette-related health issues. This will help physicians by having less chronically ill patients. The physicians will be able to focus more on providing patients with preventative health care and help them live a longer, healthier life.


References:

Economic Trends in Tobacco | Smoking & Tobacco Use | CDC. (2019, July 23). Retrieved from Economic Trends in Tobacco

Health Effects of Cigarette Smoking | CDC. (2018, January 17). Retrieved from Health Effects of Cigarette Smoking

Options for Reducing the Deficit: 2017 to 2026. (2016, December 8). Retrieved from https://www.cbo.gov/sites/default/files/114th-congress-2015-2016/reports/52142-budgetoptions2.pdf