Potential health impacts of increasing the cigarette tax in Viet Nam

H. V. Minh, N. T. Duyen*, T. T. Ngan, N. B. Ngoc, D. T. Son, P. T. Hai

*Corresponding author for this work

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

6 Citations (Scopus)

Abstract

BACKGROUND: Even after the implementation of MPOWER, Viet Nam's cigarette tax remains only 36% of the retail price. This falls short of the World Health Organization's (WHO's) recommendation that the tax share be 70% of the retail price. OBJECTIVE: To assess the health impact of different levels of cigarette taxation by estimating the impact on reducing tobacco consumption and smoking-attribut-able deaths (SADs). METHODS: A static model was developed based on a previous study by Jha et al. The model calculates the reduction in tobacco consumption, estimating the number of SADs averted and savings in health-related costs. The scenarios for increasing cigarette taxes were aligned with the Viet Nam Tobacco Tax Simulation Model developed by the WHO and the Vietnamese Ministry of Finance. RESULTS: Four scenarios proposed by the Ministry of Finance and the Ministry of Health would prevent an estimated 63339-581 165 SADs, equivalent to mortality costs of US$577-5296 million. In the ideal scenario, 6 258361 SADs would be prevented and would save US$57.0 billion. Future young smokers would see the greatest health benefits of increasing the cigarette tax. CONCLUSION: Increasing the cigarette tax could reduce the substantial health impact of tobacco use, and further result in significant financial savings across society. Viet Nam should support efforts to further increase the cigarette tax following WHO recommendations.

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)1378-1382
Number of pages5
JournalInternational Journal of Tuberculosis and Lung Disease
Volume22
Issue number11
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 01 Nov 2018
Externally publishedYes

Keywords

  • Health impact assessment
  • MPOWER
  • Taxation
  • Tobacco control
  • Tobacco tax

ASJC Scopus subject areas

  • Pulmonary and Respiratory Medicine
  • Infectious Diseases

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