Title | Cigarette Taxes and Older Adult Smoking: Evidence from the Health and Retirement Study |
Publication Type | Report |
Year of Publication | 2015 |
Authors | Maclean, JCatherine, Kessler, AS, Kenkel, DS, Department of Economics, |
Institution | Temple University |
Keywords | Consumption and Savings, Demographics, Employment and Labor Force, Health Conditions and Status, Public Policy, Women and Minorities |
Abstract | In this study we use the Health and Retirement Study (HRS) to test whether older adult smokers, defined as those 50 years and older, respond to cigarette tax increases. Our preferred specifications show that older adult smokers respond modestly to tax increases: a 1.00 (131.6 ) tax increase leads to a 3.8 to 5.2 reduction in cigarettes smoked per day (implied tax elasticity = -0.03 to -0.04). We identify heterogeneity in tax-elasticity across demographic groups as defined by sex, race/ethnicity, education, and marital status, and by smoking intensity and level of addictive stock. These findings have implications for public health policy implementation in an aging population. |
URL | http://www.cla.temple.edu/RePEc/documents/DETU_15_02.pdf |
Endnote Keywords | smoking/cigarette taxes/older adults/Health Status/Economics of the Elderly/Economics of the Handicapped/Non-labor Market Discrimination/socioeconomic Differences |
Endnote ID | 999999 |
Citation Key | 5861 |