The importance of tobacco prices to roll-your-own (RYO) smokers (national survey data): higher tax needed on RYO.

There are strong, evidence-based, public health arguments for raising tobacco taxes based on both international,1,2 and New Zealand work.3–6 The benefits include protecting young people from smoking. A systematic review reports evidence for greater price sensitivity among low-income adults, thereby suggesting that such a tax could potentially contribute to reducing health inequalities.7 Despite this, a major report8 has highlighted the lack of a real increase in tobacco prices in New Zealand since 2001. This report also showed that the proportion of tobacco consumed as loose or roll-your-own (RYO) tobacco had increased substantially over time. Recommended Citation Wilson, N., Young, D., Weerasekera, D., Edwards, R., Thomson, G., Glover, M. (2009). The importance of tobacco prices to roll-your-own (RYO) smokers (national survey data): Higher tax needed on RYO. New Zealand Medical Journal, 122 (1305), 92-96. Link To PDF: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/?term=19966883