The Effects Of Smoking On The Health Care System

This essay aims to address the issues associated with smoking, its impact on the public health and how this can be tackled through health promotion, therefore the role of the nurse will be explored in respect of the nursing contribution, especially primary care in community settings. The current national and international policies will be considered as a recognition of its impact to the public health, conjointly how these can support the nurse in delivering the health promotion. Finally, the implications for future for Public Health will be considered.

This essay is aimed to explore, analyse and discuss smoking in adults. Smoking is a public health issue as such is one of the major contributors to high mortality and ill-health in the adults which is preventable (Health and Excellence Care (NICE) (2012). The United Kingdom (UK) is known to have the highest number of people with a history of smoking among people with low socio-economic status (Scriven and Garman, 2006; Goddard and Green, 2005). Smoking is considered a serious epidemic in the UK and the National institute for Health and Excellence Care (NICE, 2012) stated that 28% of adults with low economic status are tobacco smokers compared with 13% of those with economic status or having professional

History has proven that government penalties, in the form of taxes, deter smoking. The 2000 U.S. Surgeon General’s Report, Reducing Tobacco Use, found that raising tobacco-product prices decreases the prevalence of tobacco use, and tobacco tax increases produce significant long-term improvements in health. From its review of existing research, the report concluded that raising tobacco taxes is one of the most effective tobacco prevention and control strategies (7). Along with price increases, mass-media campaigns and smoking bans have made cigarette smoking pretty much unacceptable in today’s society. “Today, approximately 22 percent of adults age twenty-two and older are smokers, compared with 33 percent in 1979” (Thorpe 1440). It is clear, from these examples, the use of penalties to deter the unhealthy behavior of smoking is a successful intervention.

Tax implications and its effect on alcohol consumption were studied in detail in working paper 8962. This study was done in Canada. What the writer found was that higher tax rates for cigarettes wouldn’t stimulate alcohol consumption as a replacement habit. When smuggling was factored into the equation, it was found that in Canadian smuggling could have increased both cigarette and alcohol consumption.

      The detrimental effects of alcohol and tobacco consumption are well documented. According to the World Health Organization (WHO) (1996:1), “tobacco products are estimated to have caused around 3 million deaths a year in the early 1990s, and unless the current smoking trends are reversed, that figure is expected to rise to 10 million deaths per year by the 2020s or early 2030s, with 70 percent of these deaths occurring in developing countries”. Likewise, alcohol abuse is widespread everywhere, and has reached alarming proportions among poor households in particular (Parry et al., 2003).Will the cost of sin taxes have an unanticipated effect on low income families and hurt them more than help them. It is argued that “sin” tax hikes may adversely affect the welfare of household members, other than the head, either directly through a re-allocation of the household

Since the introduction of the alcopops tax in 2008, evidence suggests that its introduction has not achieved its anticipated results in decreasing the quantity of alcohol youth consume. According to the University of Queensland, ‘The increased tax on `alcopops ' was not associated with any reduction in hospital admissions for alcohol-related harms in Queensland 15-29 year-olds’ (UQ, 2013).

The report talks about how the sale tax will reduce health but the tax hike varies. In fact, the demand for cigarettes should be price inelastic because cigarette smoking is addictive therefore there are no good substitutes for it. It explains why the indirect tax is relatively not effective in reducing consumption because it would only lead to higher price. As PED for a cigarette is inelastic only a very large amount of tax will bring the market output close to the socially optimal level.

Policy makers are increasingly interested in using cost effective strategies to promote reduced alcohol use and other associated risks (Ludbrook, Petrie, McKenzie, & Farrar, 2012). Apparently, this was a main political concern in the 1980s and early 1990s and was not successful in gaining congressional support regardless of the increase in both federal and most state tax over the past twenty years (Sissoko, 2002). Research suggests that increasing tobacco taxes and prices is one of the most effective method of reducing tobacco use and alcohol consumption, particularly on young individuals and the “less well off” because they are perceived as been most sensitive to price (Chaloupka, Straif, & Leon, 2011 ; Gilmore, Tavakoly et al. 2013).

The smoking of tobacco has continued to have an unfavorable influence on our health care system in association with spending. In recent studies and surveys, researchers discovered approximately $170 billion dollars of healthcare spending is paid towards diseases produced by tobacco smoke (Kennedy). A large sum of the money put towards tobacco-related illnesses is also taken from government sources. Making smoking tobacco illegal would allow the government to save billions of dollars, money that could be used for important needs in our country. Roads, bridges, and government projects could all be funded with smoking becoming illegal. The Center for Disease Control and Prevention states that more than $156 billion in lost productivity is due

The one substance found in tobacco, which is in cigarettes, is nicotine, a highly addictive drug. The drug rearranges the chemicals in the brain, dopamine and noradrenaline, causing a change in mood and concentration, giving off a feeling of relaxation. The drug elevates the mood and heart rate but doesn't last for very long.

Alcohol as a good, is very difficult to place in to the category’s assigned to many of the goods which we purchase. It is most likely that alcohol is a normal good, meaning that as incomes rise the demand for alcohol will follow suit and rise along side. Alcohol has both economic and socio-cultural elements to play in the UK’s economy. It does however, cause many problems in society. It has been estimated that alcohol misuse has cost the UK around £21 billion per year (Gov, 2012). Alcohol also provides the UK economy with large amounts of tax revenues, in the tax year of 2009-2010 alcohol

As health care providers, we have a duty to encourage and inform our patients and community about tobacco use. Over the last twenty years many studies and awareness campaigns have highlighted the risks associated with tobacco use. The Tobacco Master Settlement Agreement in 1998 reduced much of the tobacco advertising directed to young people. Also, “With the passage of the 2009 legislation giving the U.S. Food and Drug Administration authority to regulate tobacco products and advertising has proven effective” (National Center, 1970). Even with these programs and regulations, the use of tobacco rages on bringing disastrous effects to the individual. Tobacco causes reduced overall health and harms virtually every organ of the body. Tobacco is

A new study from the University of Minnesota Run by R.J. Reynolds in the economics department found in 2011 That in all the states that have significantly raised their cigarette taxes 10 percent , Almost all pack sales have gone down sharply, Except the least selling brands. While some of the decline in pack sales comes from most interstate smuggling and from smokers going to other lower-tax states to buy their cigarettes, reduced consumption and will save your live with health benefits by 7 years from smokers quitting and cutting back plays a more powerful role. R.J. Reynolds says, “If prices were 10% higher, 12-17 incidence youth smoking would be 11.9% lower”( Reynolds 1). It is clear that price has a pronounced a very large impute on smoking of teenagers and young adults, that the goals of reducing teenage smoking and balancing the budget would both be served by increasing the Federal excise tax on cigarettes. Even though there are other bigger factors to look up to , Looking at all the big trends from cigarette price trends and overall consumption in the U.S. from 1969 to 2010 shows that there is strong connection between increasing cigarette taxes , decreasing consumption and major health benefits. Reynolds says Smokers are two to four times more likely than nonsmokers to develop coronary heart disease. Even low levels of tobacco exposure, including occasional smoking or

Tobacco and alcohol consumption has been linked to a variety of medical problems. “In the United States alone, over 440,000 people die annually from smoking tobacco” (Tobacco Products.) By making the cost of unhealthy behavior prohibitive, we hope to produce a healthier society. Sin tax is used for taxes on activities that are considered socially undesirable. Common targets of sumptuary taxes are alcohol and tobacco, and gambling. I believe that Drinking and smoking are not sins, but if the effects of using them in excess have caused other Americans to pay more for medical care, I think we should impose higher taxes on them as to discourage their use. In moderation, tobacco and alcohol have few ill effects, but when overused they hurt

us to believe there is a connection between smoking and health concerns. Although sin tax can trigger hoarding and increase the black market smuggling rate. It also increases social welfare, promotes healthier lifestyles, lessens smoking cases and can reduce the national deficit. The Heartland Institute explains that,