Portugal’s government on Thursday presented legislation to extend a ban on smoking to outdoor areas including covered terraces and to restrict tobacco sales, as it hopes to raise a tobacco-free generation by 2040.
April 15 is Tax Day, as well as the date each year on which the largest tobacco companies pay $9 billion dollars to states because of tobacco-related illnesses such as cancer and heart disease. But what is the real cost of these health problems?
In addition to excessive healthcare costs, cigarettes also kill millions each year. Let’s ban them completely!
A few years back, Brazil sued cigarette companies to make them pay for smoking-associated public healthcare costs.
The U.S. industry pays billions of dollars annually in healthcare costs. Other countries should follow suit!
https://www.pbs.org/newshour/health/tobacco-companies-pay-billions-to-compensate-for-smoking-related-illness-is-it-enough
Smoking is one of the biggest burdens on the global economy. It’s time we passed on these costs to cigarette manufacturers.