Social Costs of Smoking

The Department of Human Services has published a new report on the Social Cost of Smoking called "Counting the costs of tobacco and the benefits of reducing smoking prevalence in Victoria".

Health professionals usually consider the health costs of tobacco and focus on the methods leading to smoking cessation. This research provides a broader perspective.

According to the Department "Social costs include both tangible and intangible costs. Tangible costs refer to costs spent on resources which would have been available had there been no smoking, for example hospital costs. They are borne by individuals, businesses and governments and when reduced release resources for other uses. Intangible costs are borne solely by individuals and are generally much harder to value. They include costs associated with pain, suffering and loss of life".

Professor David Collins and Professor Helen Lapsley were commissioned to undertake research into the Social Costs of Smoking in Victoria.

The objectives of the research were to:

• Estimate the social costs of smoking for Victoria for the 1998/99 financial year;
• Estimate the benefits in terms of a reduction in the social costs of smoking which are likely to arise from a reduction in smoking prevalence in Victoria from 17% (1) to 12%;
• Estimate the social benefits to be gained from effective anti-smoking programs.
  

The report found that:

• The total social costs of smoking in Victoria for the 1998/99 financial year were approximately $5.05 billion.
• Victoria bore 24 per cent of the total Australian social costs of smoking in 1998/99.
• Smoking in Victoria costs residents about $4.3 billion each year. Businesses and governments bear about $494 and $207 million in costs each year respectively