Munther Al-Hawarat, Director of the Samih Darwazah Center for Cancer, spoke on Sunday about an economic study showing that each dinar obtained from tobacco products is met with 3-5 dinars in subsequent health costs.
Al-Hawarat said that reducing the tax on various goods and products associated with heating tobacco and electronic cigarettes increases the number of smokers, considering that this decision "prints smoking behavior and undermines public health policies."
Al-Hawarat added that the tax reduction is socially understood as indicating that these products are safe, which "contradicts" the public policies to combat smoking and Jordan's efforts to reduce diseases caused by smoking in all its forms.
He clarified that international experiences have proved that taxation is one of the tools to reduce smoking, as higher prices lead to fewer smokers.
He continued that studies have proved that vaping electronic cigarettes does not replace traditional smoking, but may be used as a gateway to it and makes people addicted to nicotine, and that electronic cigarettes are not safe health-wise.
He pointed out that electronic cigarettes have major harms, including severe lung disorder that can lead to complications only treatable by removing part of the lung, as well as causing significant nervous system disorders in the brain, affecting behavior and attention significantly.
Al-Hawarat added that vaping electronic cigarettes can be carcinogenic, which increases the future burden in treating cancer.
He said that this could be an "economic failure," as any short-term increase in revenue from smoking is met in the future with increased treatment costs.
He explained that "the cost of a cancer patient to the government is not less than 100,000 dinars over the years of the disease."
He noted that the health damages associated with vaping electronic cigarettes have not all been discovered due to their short lifespan.
