DOH wants higher taxes on tobacco to fund Universal Health Care, discourage smoking

The Department of Health (DOH) is pushing for higher tax rates on tobacco products to gather more funds for the Universal Health Care Bill.

According to Tina Panganiban-Perez's report on GMA News TV's Balitanghali on Monday, Health Secretary Francisco Duque III said the proposal of DOH aims not only to produce additional funds for the Health Care Bill but also to lessen the number of smoking Filipinos.

The Universal Health Care Bill has been approved in its last reading in the House of Representatives and Senate, waiting to be certified by Malacañang as urgent to be fully implemented.

A Pulse Asia survey in September 2018 showed that 67 percent or one out of two Filipinos is in favor of higher tax on tobacco.

If a pack of cigarette is taxed P97, an estimated one million people will be saved from dying due to a smoking-related disease, Duque said.

Duque added that if a higher tax rate is implemented on tobacco, the percentage of smokers among Filipinos would drop from 21.6 to 15.7.

Dr. Gundo Weiler, World Health Organization (WHO) Representaive in the Philippines, supports the DOH’s call for higher tobacco taxes.

Weiler said higher taxes on tobacco products will lessen smoking.

He added that one of three adults will prematurely die before the age of 70, and majority of them will die from smoking-related causes.

Weiler said that the strategy of DOH is a win-win situation, which targets more funds for health care, and at the same time, lessens the population of smokers in the country.

He also said that same proposal was also done in other countries. —Joviland Rita and Tina Panganiban-Perez/NB/KG, GMA News