Smokers with access to low-tax cigarettes less likely to quit

May 26 2005

Smokers who bought low-taxed cigarettes from American Indian reservations were half as likely to try to quit and had less success when they did attempt to kick the habit compared to smokers who bought full-price cigarettes.

A random telephone survey of 1,548 adults, including 908 smokers, in two New York counties between October 2002 and 2003 found the percentage of smokers who tried to quit was far lower if those smokers frequented American Indian reservations for their cigarettes. And while those smokers who bought cigarettes on reservations were half as likely to try to quit, they also had lower smoking cessation rates than those who bought full-price cigarettes.

Cigarettes are a revenue source on these reservations, yet the study’s authors said low-price cigarettes are a dangerous incentive that keeps many smokers going back for more.

[From: “ Access to Low-Taxed Cigarettes Deters Smoking Cessation Attempts.” Contact: Andrew Hyland, PhD, Roswell Park Cancer Institute, Department of Health Behavior, Buffalo, N.Y., [email protected].]