![]() One argument against raising alcohol taxes is that such increases will place a large and unfair financial burden on “responsible” (i.e., lower-risk) drinkers. ![]() 9ĭespite strong evidence of public health benefit, there have been few recent alcohol tax increases and many initiatives to raise them have been defeated on the basis of arguments about the economic fairness of alcohol taxes. 10 Furthermore, a comprehensive review found an inverse relationship between alcohol price and consumption, and determined that a 10% increase in alcohol prices would result in a 3% to 10% decrease in overall consumption. 8– 10 A meta-analysis of 50 publications found that doubling the alcohol excise tax would reduce alcohol-related mortality by an average of 35%, traffic crash deaths by 11%, sexually transmitted disease by 6%, violence by 2%, and crime by 1.4%. Increasing the price of alcohol through alcohol excise taxes is an effective means of reducing excessive drinking, and is considered the most important public health intervention to reduce alcohol-related harms. 3– 7 Alcohol is also a major cause of social problems (e.g., child neglect, divorce), legal and criminal justice problems, and economic costs 4. 2 Drinking is also a major risk factor for a variety of adverse health outcomes, such as unintentional injuries, violence, unintended pregnancy, and cardiovascular disease. Excessive alcohol consumption is a leading cause of preventable death 1 attributed to approximately 79,000 deaths annually in the U.S., shortening the lives of those who die by an average of 30 years.
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