Cigarette Tax, will it Save California?
Written by Dr. Jeffery Herman // February 6, 2012 // Health // No comments
It is a question that voters must ponder on the June 5th Ballot.
Is the California Cancer Research Act (CCRA) a good idea? It is presently estimated that the new tax hike will increase a pack of cigarettes by nearly a dollar, which is expected to bring an annual increase of over 850 million in revenue for smoking education programs, medical research, and tobacco law enforcement.
It is also a question recently analyzed by UCSF, which indicated that more than the orignal estimates, the introduction of this tax would create 12,000 new jobs and bring in about 2 billion dollars of economic revenue to the state of California.
The study determined that the tax would significantly affect how much people smoked, and because of this reduced smoking they will spend more money in other ways, thus increasing the California economy. Also, although some retail jobs may suffer, the tax would likely create 12,000 new jobs.
Other estimates say this tax can save California, in the long run, 32 billion dollars in healthcare bills.
It sounds awesome, but then again if something sounds to good to be true, then it likely is. What do you think?
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