Publication: The Distributional Impacts of Health Taxes
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2022
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2023-01-09
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The link between health problems and the consumption of tobacco, alcohol, and sugar-sweetened beverages (SSBs) has been widely studied. A large array of diseases is associated with tobacco, ranging from lung cancer and stroke to congenital malformations in children. Similarly, SSB consumption has been linked to diseases, such as diabetes, cardiovascular disease, and other types of cancer. Meanwhile, alcohol is not only linked to diseases, such as cancer, cardiovascular disorders, and liver cirrhosis, but also to fatalities through motor vehicle accidents, homicide, suicide, and domestic violence. This note presents a summary of the evidence gathered by the World Bank over the last five years on the distributional impacts of health taxes, including on tobacco (Bangladesh, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Brazil, Chile, Georgia, Indonesia, Mexico, Moldova, the Russian Federation, South Africa, Ukraine, Vietnam), SSBs (Brazil, Kazakhstan, Ukraine), and alcohol (Brazil).
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“Fuchs, Alan; Pierola, Denisse. 2022. The Distributional Impacts of Health Taxes. Equitable Growth, Finance and Institutions Insight - Poverty and Equity;. © World Bank. http://hdl.handle.net/10986/38409 License: CC BY 3.0 IGO.”
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