IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/p/upf/upfses/548.html
   My bibliography  Save this paper

How important are tobacco prices in the propensity to start and quit smoking? An analysis of smoking histories from the Spanish National Health Survey

Author

Listed:
  • Ángel López Nicolás

Abstract

This paper analyses the effect of tobacco prices on the propensity to start and quit smoking using a pool of the 1993, 1995 and 1997 editions of the Spanish National Health Surveys. The estimates for several parametric models of the hazard rate for starting and quitting suggest that i) The public health measures applied as of 1992 have had a significative effect on both reducing the hazard of starting and increasing the hazard of quitting, ii) Prices have a very weak effect on the hazard of starting in the male population and no significant effect in the female population, iii) The price floor of cigarrettes, proxied by the average price of a pack of black cigarrettes, has a significant effect on the quitting hazard which is robust across specifications and applies to both men and women. The implied price elasticity of the time up to quitting is situated around -1.4.

Suggested Citation

  • Ángel López Nicolás, 2001. "How important are tobacco prices in the propensity to start and quit smoking? An analysis of smoking histories from the Spanish National Health Survey," Working Papers, Research Center on Health and Economics 548, Department of Economics and Business, Universitat Pompeu Fabra.
    • Handle: RePEc:upf:upfses:548
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://econ-papers.upf.edu/papers/548.pdf
    File Function: Whole Paper
    Download Restriction: no
    ---><---

    Other versions of this item:

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Sergio Jimenez & José M. Labeaga, 1994. "Is it possible to reduce tobacco consumption via alcohol taxation?," Health Economics, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 3(4), pages 231-241, July.
    2. Chaloupka, Frank J. & Warner, Kenneth E., 2000. "The economics of smoking," Handbook of Health Economics, in: A. J. Culyer & J. P. Newhouse (ed.), Handbook of Health Economics, edition 1, volume 1, chapter 29, pages 1539-1627, Elsevier.
    3. John A. Tauras & Frank J. Chaloupka, 1999. "Determinants of Smoking Cessation: An Analysis of Young Adult Men and Women," NBER Working Papers 7262, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    4. Simon Peters, 2000. "On the use of the RESET test in microeconometric models," Applied Economics Letters, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 7(6), pages 361-365.
    5. Sergi Jiménez‐Martín & José M. Labeaga & Angel López, 1998. "Participation, heterogeneity and dynamics in tobacco consumption: evidence from cohort data," Health Economics, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 7(5), pages 401-414, August.
    6. Garcia, Jaume & Labeaga, Jose M, 1996. "Alternative Approaches to Modelling Zero Expenditure: An Application to Spanish Demand for Tobacco," Oxford Bulletin of Economics and Statistics, Department of Economics, University of Oxford, vol. 58(3), pages 489-506, August.
    7. Martin Forster & Andrew M. Jones, 2001. "The role of tobacco taxes in starting and quitting smoking: Duration analysis of British data," Journal of the Royal Statistical Society Series A, Royal Statistical Society, vol. 164(3), pages 517-547.
    8. Labeaga, Jose M., 1999. "A double-hurdle rational addiction model with heterogeneity: Estimating the demand for tobacco," Journal of Econometrics, Elsevier, vol. 93(1), pages 49-72, November.
    9. Namkee Ahn & Josée Alberto Molina, "undated". "Smoking in Spain: Analysis of Initiation and Cessation," Working Papers 2001-02, FEDEA.
    10. Martin Forster & Andrew M. Jones, "undated". "The role of tobacco taxes in starting and quitting smoking," Discussion Papers 00/51, Department of Economics, University of York.
    11. Douglas, Stratford, 1998. "The Duration of the Smoking Habit," Economic Inquiry, Western Economic Association International, vol. 36(1), pages 49-64, January.
    12. Edward C. Norton, 2013. "nursing homes," The New Palgrave Dictionary of Economics,, Palgrave Macmillan.
    13. Douglas, Stratford & Hariharan, Govind, 1994. "The hazard of starting smoking: Estimates from a split population duration model," Journal of Health Economics, Elsevier, vol. 13(2), pages 213-230, July.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Citations

    Citations are extracted by the CitEc Project, subscribe to its RSS feed for this item.
    as


    Cited by:

    1. van Ours, Jan C. & Williams, Jenny, 2007. "Cannabis prices and dynamics of cannabis use," Journal of Health Economics, Elsevier, vol. 26(3), pages 578-596, May.
    2. Etilé, Fabrice & Jones, Andrew M., 2011. "Schooling and smoking among the baby boomers - An evaluation of the impact of educational expansion in France," Journal of Health Economics, Elsevier, vol. 30(4), pages 811-831, July.
    3. Christian Bünnings, 2017. "Does new health information affect health behaviour? The effect of health events on smoking cessation," Applied Economics, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 49(10), pages 987-1000, February.
    4. Christian Bünnings, 2013. "Does New Health Information Affect Health Behavior? The Effect of Health Events on Smoking Cessation," Ruhr Economic Papers 0459, Rheinisch-Westfälisches Institut für Wirtschaftsforschung, Ruhr-Universität Bochum, Universität Dortmund, Universität Duisburg-Essen.
    5. Philip DeCicca & Donald Kenkel & Alan Mathios & Yoon‐Jeong Shin & Jae‐Young Lim, 2008. "Youth smoking, cigarette prices, and anti‐smoking sentiment," Health Economics, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 17(6), pages 733-749, June.
    6. Jan C. van Ours, 2006. "Dynamics in the use of drugs," Health Economics, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 15(12), pages 1283-1294, December.
    7. Don Kenkel, 2012. "Health Behaviours Among Young People," Chapters, in: Andrew M. Jones (ed.), The Elgar Companion to Health Economics, Second Edition, chapter 6, Edward Elgar Publishing.
    8. David Madden, 2007. "Tobacco taxes and starting and quitting smoking: does the effect differ by education?," Applied Economics, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 39(5), pages 613-627.
    9. Göhlmann, Silja, 2007. "The Determinants of Smoking Initiation - Empirical Evidence for Germany," Ruhr Economic Papers 27, RWI - Leibniz-Institut für Wirtschaftsforschung, Ruhr-University Bochum, TU Dortmund University, University of Duisburg-Essen.
    10. Nonnemaker, James M. & Farrelly, Matthew C., 2011. "Smoking initiation among youth: The role of cigarette excise taxes and prices by race/ethnicity and gender," Journal of Health Economics, Elsevier, vol. 30(3), pages 560-567, May.
    11. repec:zbw:rwirep:0027 is not listed on IDEAS
    12. Silja Göhlmann, 2007. "The Determinants of Smoking Initiation - Empirical Evidence for Germany," Ruhr Economic Papers 0027, Rheinisch-Westfälisches Institut für Wirtschaftsforschung, Ruhr-Universität Bochum, Universität Dortmund, Universität Duisburg-Essen.
    13. DeCicca, Philip & Kenkel, Don & Mathios, Alan, 2008. "Cigarette taxes and the transition from youth to adult smoking: Smoking initiation, cessation, and participation," Journal of Health Economics, Elsevier, vol. 27(4), pages 904-917, July.
    14. van Baal, Pieter H.M. & Brouwer, Werner B.F. & Hoogenveen, Rudolf T. & Feenstra, Talitha L., 2007. "Increasing tobacco taxes: A cheap tool to increase public health," Health Policy, Elsevier, vol. 82(2), pages 142-152, July.
    15. Göhlmann, Silja & Schmidt, Christoph M., 2008. "Smoking in Germany: Stylized Facts, Behavioral Models, and Health Policy," Ruhr Economic Papers 64, RWI - Leibniz-Institut für Wirtschaftsforschung, Ruhr-University Bochum, TU Dortmund University, University of Duisburg-Essen.
    16. Christopoulou, Rebekka & Lillard, Dean R., 2015. "Is smoking behavior culturally determined? Evidence from British immigrants," Journal of Economic Behavior & Organization, Elsevier, vol. 110(C), pages 78-90.
    17. repec:zbw:rwirep:0064 is not listed on IDEAS
    18. repec:zbw:rwirep:0459 is not listed on IDEAS
    19. Silja Göhlmann & Christoph M. Schmidt, 2008. "Smoking in Germany: Stylized Facts, Behavioral Models, and Health Policy," Ruhr Economic Papers 0064, Rheinisch-Westfälisches Institut für Wirtschaftsforschung, Ruhr-Universität Bochum, Universität Dortmund, Universität Duisburg-Essen.
    20. Deliana Kostova & Frank Chaloupka & Ce Shang, 2015. "A duration analysis of the role of cigarette prices on smoking initiation and cessation in developing countries," The European Journal of Health Economics, Springer;Deutsche Gesellschaft für Gesundheitsökonomie (DGGÖ), vol. 16(3), pages 279-288, April.

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Göhlmann, Silja & Schmidt, Christoph M., 2008. "Smoking in Germany: Stylized Facts, Behavioral Models, and Health Policy," Ruhr Economic Papers 64, RWI - Leibniz-Institut für Wirtschaftsforschung, Ruhr-University Bochum, TU Dortmund University, University of Duisburg-Essen.
    2. Anne Bretteville-Jensen, 2006. "Drug Demand – Initiation, Continuation and Quitting," De Economist, Springer, vol. 154(4), pages 491-516, December.
    3. repec:zbw:rwirep:0064 is not listed on IDEAS
    4. Silja Göhlmann & Christoph M. Schmidt, 2008. "Smoking in Germany: Stylized Facts, Behavioral Models, and Health Policy," Ruhr Economic Papers 0064, Rheinisch-Westfälisches Institut für Wirtschaftsforschung, Ruhr-Universität Bochum, Universität Dortmund, Universität Duisburg-Essen.
    5. Hammar, Henrik & Carlsson, Fredrik, 2001. "Smokers' Decisions To Quit Smoking," Working Papers in Economics 59, University of Gothenburg, Department of Economics.
    6. G. Guindon, 2014. "The impact of tobacco prices on smoking onset in Vietnam: duration analyses of retrospective data," The European Journal of Health Economics, Springer;Deutsche Gesellschaft für Gesundheitsökonomie (DGGÖ), vol. 15(1), pages 19-39, January.
    7. DeCicca, Philip & Kenkel, Don & Mathios, Alan, 2008. "Cigarette taxes and the transition from youth to adult smoking: Smoking initiation, cessation, and participation," Journal of Health Economics, Elsevier, vol. 27(4), pages 904-917, July.
    8. David Madden, 2007. "Tobacco taxes and starting and quitting smoking: does the effect differ by education?," Applied Economics, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 39(5), pages 613-627.
    9. Jan C. van Ours, 2006. "Dynamics in the use of drugs," Health Economics, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 15(12), pages 1283-1294, December.
    10. David Madden, 2002. "Do Tobacco Taxes Influence Starting and Quitting Smoking? A Duration Analysis Approach Using Evidence from a Sample of Irish Women," Working Papers 200206, School of Economics, University College Dublin.
    11. Hammar, Henrik & Martinsson, Peter, 2001. "The Effect Of Cigarette Prices And Antismoking Policies On The Age Of Smoking Initiation," Working Papers in Economics 62, University of Gothenburg, Department of Economics.
    12. van Ours, Jan C. & Williams, Jenny, 2007. "Cannabis prices and dynamics of cannabis use," Journal of Health Economics, Elsevier, vol. 26(3), pages 578-596, May.
    13. Pierre Koning & Dinand Webbink & Nicholas Martin, 2015. "The effect of education on smoking behavior: new evidence from smoking durations of a sample of twins," Empirical Economics, Springer, vol. 48(4), pages 1479-1497, June.
    14. David (David Patrick) Madden, 2003. "Tobacco taxes and starting and quitting smoking : does the effect differ by education?," Open Access publications 10197/785, School of Economics, University College Dublin.
    15. Leigh Ann Leung, 2014. "Healthy And Unhealthy Assimilation: Country Of Origin And Smoking Behavior Among Immigrants," Health Economics, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 23(12), pages 1411-1429, December.
    16. Namkee Ahn & Josée Alberto Molina, "undated". "Smoking in Spain: Analysis of Initiation and Cessation," Working Papers 2001-02, FEDEA.
    17. Ferrando-Latorre, Sandra, 2017. "Risky consumption and intergenerational mobility: a research program in a family context," MPRA Paper 79777, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    18. Ramanan Laxminarayan & Anil Deolalikar, 2004. "Tobacco initiation, cessation, and change: evidence from Vietnam," Health Economics, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 13(12), pages 1191-1201, December.
    19. Sergey Arzhenovsky, 2006. "Socioeconomic determinants of smoking in Russia (in Russian)," Quantile, Quantile, issue 1, pages 81-100, September.
    20. Arzhenovskiy Sergey, 2005. "Socioeconomic determinants of smoking in contemporary Russia," EERC Working Paper Series 05-12e, EERC Research Network, Russia and CIS.
    21. van Ours, Jan C. & Palali, Ali, 2017. "The Impact of Tobacco Control Policies on Smoking Initiation in Europe," CEPR Discussion Papers 12201, C.E.P.R. Discussion Papers.

    More about this item

    Keywords

    Smoking; taxes; health; care;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • C5 - Mathematical and Quantitative Methods - - Econometric Modeling
    • D12 - Microeconomics - - Household Behavior - - - Consumer Economics: Empirical Analysis
    • H3 - Public Economics - - Fiscal Policies and Behavior of Economic Agents

    Statistics

    Access and download statistics

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:upf:upfses:548. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: the person in charge (email available below). General contact details of provider: http://www.econ.upf.edu/ .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.