As a physician, this issue is incredibly close to my heart. We owe it to our friends and loved ones to work as a legislative body to embrace innovation and policies that help adult smokers transition away from cigarettes.
Despite some progress in reducing the number of cigarette smokers, smoking remains the leading cause of disease and preventable death in Alabama. Fortunately, there are some commonsense steps we can take to reduce smoking rates even further. As we head into the next legislative session, it is essential that we embrace free-market approaches that would further improve the health and well-being of Alabamians.
My legislation, which I will be introducing again, would align our state’s tax code with the U.S. Food and Drug Administration’s framework for assessing the relative risk of tobacco products. Simply put, we should ensure that less harmful products are taxed less, providing an important incentive for adult smokers to switch.
Heated tobacco products provide a path for adults who smoke to transition to a less harmful option, offering a similar experience to smoking without the dangerous effects of inhaling toxic smoke. Studies show that these products have 90 percent fewer harmful chemicals than cigarette smoke, which is a critical step forward in our efforts to reduce smoking-related diseases.
Some critics argue that the loss in cigarette tax revenue might offset these benefits. As a public official and a medical professional, I can say with complete confidence that relying on revenue from a product that kills nearly half a million Americans annually is not sound policy from either a public health or fiscal standpoint.
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