With elections three weeks away, California has some big decisions to make, including Proposition 56 which increase tax for tobacco.
By voting yes, voters are agreeing to increase the tax by two dollars for cigarettes and other tobacco products, as well as electronic cigarettes. But will that two dollar increase stop avid cigarette smokers or tobacco users purchasing cigarettes or smoking overall?
The revenue from the tax money from the increase goes to the General Fund, tobacco prevention, healthcare services for low-income persons, environmental protection, breast cancer screenings and research. With every addiction comes a cost with one’s well being.
So not only is tobacco use affecting users, it’s also putting non tobacco users lives as risk, which is quite alarming.
A study done by Kevin Callison and Robert Kaestner of the Nation Bureau of Economic Research, found most older adults won’tstop cigarette consumption unless a sizable tax increase occurred. So this two dollar increase might be thing California needs in order to reduce consumption of cigarettes and other tobacco usage.
There are many effects of smoking cigarettes and using tobacco products. According, to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, effects can be anything from harm to nearly every organ of the body, causes many diseases and reduces the health of smokers in general. Quitting smoking lowers your risk for smoking-related diseases and can add years to your life.” According to ASH, tobacco smoke contains over 4,000 chemicals and 250 of them known to harm humans. Individuals have no clue what they are inhaling in and out of their mouth.
In 2014 the tobacco industries made over $744 billion dollars in revenue. But with these industries over 20 percent of all deaths in the United States came from tobacco use and products, according to ASH.
Raising the tax on cigarettes, this can help avid smokers to potentially slow down and eventually, quit, as well as protect non-smokers lives as well. Even though is it only a two dollar tax increase, this could be the turning point for some smokers.
So will 2016 be the year we see the most decrease in cigarette smoking and tobacco use? By voting yes, this mightgive reason for cigarettes smokers and tobacco product users to think twice when it comes to using and purchasing products.

Photo from wikipedia.org