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The loss of tobacco tax revenue will be offset by savings in health care and various indirect costs.

According to foreign reports, nicotine e-cigarettes have been widely considered to be much less harmful than smoking. The study found that smokers who switched to electronic cigarettes would improve their overall health in a short time. Therefore, public health has a vested interest in promoting e-cigarettes as a harm reduction option for quitting smoking.

An estimated 45000 people die from smoking every year. These deaths account for about 18 per cent of all deaths in Canada. More than 100 Canadians die from smoking every day, which is more than the total number of deaths caused by car accidents, accidental injuries, self mutilation and attacks.

According to Health Canada, in 2012, deaths caused by smoking led to a potential loss of life of nearly 600000 years, mainly due to malignant tumors, cardiovascular diseases and respiratory diseases.

Although smoking may not be obvious and seems to have been largely eradicated, this is not the case. Canada still has an estimated 4.5 million smokers, and smoking remains the leading cause of premature death and disease. Tobacco control must remain a priority. For these reasons, public health benefits should be the main goal of active tobacco control, but there are also economic incentives to eliminate smoking. In addition to the obvious direct health care costs, smoking also brings many little-known indirect costs to society.

“The total cost of tobacco use is US $16.2 billion, of which indirect costs account for more than half of the total cost (58.5%), and direct costs account for the rest (41.5%). Health care costs are the largest component of the direct cost of smoking, which was about US $6.5 billion in 2012. This includes costs related to prescription drugs (US $1.7 billion), Doctor Care (US $1billion) and hospital care (US $3.8 billion) . Federal, provincial and territorial governments have also spent $122million on tobacco control and law enforcement. ”

“Indirect costs related to smoking have also been estimated, which reflect the loss of production (i.e. lost income) due to incidence rate and premature death caused by smoking. These production losses totaled $9.5 billion, of which nearly $2.5 billion was due to premature death and $7billion was due to short-term and long-term disability.” Health Canada said.

As the adoption rate of e-cigarettes increases, the direct and indirect costs will decrease over time. A study found that a fairly loose regulatory environment can achieve net health benefits and cost savings. Moreover, in a letter to the British Medical Journal, public health leaders wrote: the government is right to hope to make smoking obsolete. If this goal is achieved, it is estimated that 500000 jobs will be created in the UK as smokers spend their money on other goods and services. For England alone, the net income of public finance will reach about 600million pounds.

“Over time, the loss of tobacco tax revenue will be compensated by savings in medical care and various indirect costs. When determining the excise tax rate of e-cigarettes, legislators should consider the health benefits of transition smokers and the corresponding medical care savings. Canada has passed e-cigarettes regulations to achieve its goal of preventing teenagers.” Darryl tempest, government relations adviser to the electronic cigarette Council of Canada, said that the government should not use destructive and severe taxes, but should ensure that existing regulations are implemented.