17.8 What would be the benefits of increased investment in tobacco control?

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Reductions in smoking would be followed by reductions in financial and economic costs for ex-smokers and their families, businesses outside of the tobacco industry, insurers and governments.

As part of their 2003 analysis of the costs of smoking in Victoria, Collins and Lapsley estimated the savings that could be expected from a reduction of Victorian smoking prevalence of five percentage points over the five-year period commencing 2003–04.23 An assumption of this analysis is that, in the absence of interventions to reduce the rate of smoking prevalence in Victoria, the rate would remain at the 2003 level of 17%. Depending on assumptions about the cost and the effectiveness of various interventions and discount rates, the long-term benefits of such a reduction could be valued at between $2034 million to $13,958 million. Similar benefits could be expected with additional investment in tobacco control in New South Wales and Western Australia.

What might reductions in smoking mean in human and political terms?

Below are listed some of the immediate, medium-term and long-range benefits—including some that are easily costed and others not so easy to quantify.17

17.8.1 Benefits to health funders and public and private insurers

17.8.1.1 Early gains

• significant reductions in the number of infants requiring perinatal care
• reductions in the use of ambulances and emergency care for asthma sufferers
• reductions in medical costs due to reduced infections and faster bone and wound healing after surgery.26

17.8.1.2 Continuing returns

• reduced numbers of heart attacks resulting in less demand on emergency, intensive care and cardiovascular treatment services
• reduced expenditure on drugs to treat cardiovascular disease.

17.8.1.3 Maturing investments

• reduced net spending on medical, hospital and pharmaceutical treatments and ambulance services for cancer, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease and a range of other health conditions caused or made worse by smoking.

17.8.2 Benefits to employers—business and federal and state government

17.8.2.1 Continuing returns

• a reduction in absenteeism costs conservatively estimated at about $780 million in 2004–05
• avoidance of lost expertise due to premature death and disability.

17.8.3 Benefits to Australian businesses

17.8.3.1 Early gains

• up to $10 billion per year in increased sales of goods and services purchased from businesses other than the tobacco industry
• workers taking fewer smoking breaks at undesignated break times therefore reducing the loss in productivity35, 94
• fewer claims related to passive smoking17 and common conditions such as back injuries which tend to heal more slowly in smokers117
• reduced cost of premiums for property and WorkCover insurance due to lower incidence of fires
• reduced risk of litigation by employees and patrons suffering illness due to failure to provide smokefree facilities.

17.8.3.2 Maturing investments

• increased market for goods and services due to significantly more people living longer and fuller lives.

17.8.4 Benefits to smokers who quit and their families

17.8.4.1 Early gains

• based on smoking a pack of 20 cigarettes per day, money saved in a week would be $63, or $3275 in a year[14] (and relative to household income, the greatest benefits, in terms of additional available expenditure, would accrue to the poorest 20% of households41)
• reduced illnesses in children resulting in improved school attendance and less absenteeism for parents
• greater enjoyment of life from improved fitness, sense of smell and taste
• fewer people suffering
• the tragedy of still-birth or sudden infant death
• the shock of a children or parent dying suddenly during an asthma attack
• the trauma of a child or elderly relative killed in a housefire
• the devastation of an infant or adolescent child dying or severely disabled by meningococcal disease.

17.8.4.2 Continuing returns

• potential for increased household savings, allowing quicker transition to home ownership and/or earlier and greater contributions to superannuation funds
• lower household spending on medical services
• fewer children taking up smoking and thus perpetuating health and material inequality
• fewer families losing providers at the peak of their income-earning capacities
• fewer families losing providers in the household in unpaid roles.

17.8.4.3 Maturing investments

• greater enjoyment of life due to less incapacity caused by conditions worsened by smoking including macular degeneration, hearing impairment, impotence, osteoarthritis and diabetes
• potential for greater generation of wealth allowing long-term financial support for dependent spouses and greater inheritance for children.17

17.8.5 Summary of benefits

Adoption of effective tobacco control policies and commercially realistic funding for anti-smoking advertising would significantly reduce smoking and substantially improve the overall welfare of individual, families, communities and society generally, resulting in summary, in

• reductions in waiting times and costs for health care funders and providers
• improved productivity, lower costs and greatly increased markets for business
• improved health, quality of life and prosperity for smokers and their families.17