Tobacco retail outlet restrictions: health and cost impacts from multistate life-table modelling in a national population

Abstract

These tobacco outlet reductions reduced smoking prevalence, achieved health gains and saved health system costs. Effects would be larger if outlet reductions have additional spill-over effects (eg, smoking denormalisation). While these interventions were not as effective as tobacco tax increases (using the same model), these and other strategies could be combined to maximise health gain and to maximise cost-savings to the health system.

Tobacco Town: Computational Modeling of Policy Options to Reduce Tobacco Retailer Density

“…More dramatic reductions in density may be required before consumers would either have to search longer for tobacco products or be willing to pay more for tobacco. 26 This has implications for communities that are considering many different policy options. For example, in our model, a 500-foot buffer around schools only resulted in a density reduction of 1% to 2% for suburban settings, and essentially no increased search costs.…”

“…22–24 Although some modeling studies have examined retail policy effects, they have relied on econometric modeling techniques (such as life-table forecasting) that cannot examine individual behavior–environment interactions. 25,26 The focus of agent-based modeling on agent interaction allows detailed examination of how public health policies may affect individual behavior, as well as how the local physical and social environment influences behavioral dynamics. Use of agent-based models to study policy mechanisms and effects has recently been recommended as an important tool in tobacco control policy and regulation.…”

A national quitline service and its promotion in the mass media: modelling the health gain, health equity and cost–utility

“…But if a government wished to make rapid progress towards a smokefree nation goal (or at least a very low smoking prevalence target), then it might still prioritise other interventions detailed in table 5 that have potentially larger impacts. These include regular tobacco tax increases7 or more novel endgame interventions such as phasing down tobacco retail outlets8 or a sinking lid on tobacco supply 9 30…”

“…Health system costs were from a detailed national data set linking individual health events with cost data11 and with recent refinements to our costing approach being detailed in the online supplementary material in Pearson et al 8…”

Estimating the effect of a potential policy to restrict tobacco retail availability in New Zealand

“…Reducing tobacco retail availability will likely have the greatest impact on smoking behaviour when the density of tobacco retailers is very low (eg, at <10% of current density),24 and modelling studies suggest achieving this reduction would help lower smoking prevalence and health inequities 2519.…”