Tax and smokefree policies in Thailand cut heart attacks and reduced health care costs
Patanavanich R, Glantz S. Association between tobacco control policies and hospital admissions for acute myocardial infarction in Thailand, 2006-2017: A time series analysis. PLoS ONE 2020; 15(12): e0242570. https://journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0242570
“Cigarette price increases were associated with a significant 4.7% drop in AMI hospitalizations among adults younger than 45 (incidence rate ratio [IRR], 0.953; 95% confidence interval [CI], 0.914–0.993; p = 0.021). Implementation of the 100% smokefree law was followed by a significant 13.1% drop in AMI hospitalizations among adults younger than 45 (IRR, 0.869; 95% CI, 0.801–0.993; P = 0.001). There were not significant associations in older age groups….
To improve effectiveness of the policies, taxes should be high enough to increase cigarette price above inflation rates, making cigarettes less likely to be purchased; smokefree laws should be strictly enforced.”
Stephen Hamann
