Impact of E-Cigarette and Cigarette Prices on Youth and Young Adult E-Cigarette and Cigarette Behaviour: Evidence from a National Longitudinal Cohort
Bottom Line: This study examines how e-cigarette and cigarette prices affect use among youth and young adults. Higher cigarette prices were correlated with greater e-cigarette use, indicating that e-cigarettes may serve as a substitute for cigarettes.
Twin public health goals are the reduction of cigarette smoking and the prevention of e-cigarette use among young people. Perhaps the best strategy for reducing cigarette use is tax and price policy, for higher prices are associated with lower use -- especially among young people who are even more responsive to price changes.
In this study, the average e-cigarette price at baseline was $18.05 (in 2016 dollars), but over the study period declined to an overall average of $13.66. Prices for cigarette packs, meanwhile, remained relatively stable over time at $6–$7.
The study found that higher e-cigarette prices are not associated with either current e-cigarette use or current cigarette use. However, the results indicated that a 10% increase in cigarette prices could increase e-cigarette use by 5.8%–9.4% among youth.
State-level e-cigarette minimum legal purchase age laws were found to reduce the likelihood of e-cigarette use among young people. These findings indicate a trend of e-cigarettes as a possible substitute for cigarettes.
As products in the tobacco and nicotine marketplace multiply and consumers develop complex new patterns of use, this issue of relative prices for tobacco and nicotine products becomes increasingly important.
These findings suggest the need for better measuring the costs associated with e-cigarette use among youth and young adults, as well as a careful assessment of price and tax policies that takes into account cross-product impact to sufficiently discourage e-cigarette and cigarette use among young people.
Read the full study here.
Average Price of Cigarettes and E-Cigarettes by Quarter and Year
Findings:
- The average e-cigarette price at baseline was $18.05 (in 2016 dollars), but over the study period declined to an overall average of $13.66, while prices for cigarette packs remained relatively stable over time at $6–$7.
- A 10% increase in cigarette prices could increase e-cigarette use by 5.8%–9.4% among youth, indicating that e-cigarettes may serve as a substitute for cigarettes.
- Higher e-cigarette prices are not associated with either current e-cigarette use or current cigarette use.
