Professional Documents
Culture Documents
S.L.H.S. DEPARTMENT
(School of Languages, Humanities & Social Sciences)
ENG10 A8
PINEDA, MANUEL JOHN F.
7:30 9:00 MWF
Research Paper
SCORE :__________
DATE :__________
PROF. ALVARADO
The Sin Tax Bill
SIN TAX BASICS
the poor quintiles smoke significantly more than any other quintile, a dangerous reality as they
are also the least economically stable.
2. Why do we need to discourage people from smoking?
The general health of the public has been adversely affected by these high smoking rates. An
estimated 515 to 827 Filipinos contract smoking-related lung cancer, and lung and heart diseases
daily. In the Philippines, the top four killers of Filipinos cancer, heart disease, stroke, and
chronic pulmonary obstructive disease, are all smoking-related. The government pays P188
billion annually just to treat these four major diseases.
7 out of 10 leading causes of mortality are smoking-related. 87,000 Filipinos die every year
because of these smoking-related diseasesthat is equivalent to about 240 deaths daily, and 10
deaths an hour. About half of all tobacco-related deaths will occur between the ages of 35-69
resulting in a loss of 20-25 years of life for smokers versus non-smokers.
This is more than just a statisticthese are ten breadwinners, fathers, and mothers dying
every hour from smoking-related diseases, leaving families behind, and causing further burdens
to the delivery of health care services. It is especially important for us to discourage the youth
and the poor from smoking and drinking. Studies have shown that the adverse health effects of
smoking and drinking are worst for those who began these habits at a young age. The situation is
similarly dire for the poor, who are the most burdened by the costs of smoking.
ABOUT:
The numbers are clear: smoking and smoking-related diseases among Filipinos have
grown to alarming rates. 17.3 million Filipinos 15 years old and above are smokers. As of 2007,
almost 30% of teenagers aged 13-15 in urban areas have joined the ranks of smokersand this
represents a staggering 40 percent increase from the 2003 numbers.
515 to 827 Filipinos contract smoking-related lung cancer, and lung and heart diseases
every day. An estimated 10 Filipinos die every hour due to smoking-related diseases. Thats 240
deaths a day, and 87,000 a year. The further we go down the poverty line, the worse the scenario
gets: the poorer you are, the more susceptible you are to smoking-related diseases, and the more
difficult it is to get adequate healthcare. In spite of these facts, the Philippines remains one of the
cheapest places to get cigarettes in the world.
The fact of the matter is that the previous excise taxes on tobacco have not been able to
curb the increasing consumption of tobacco products. For instance, because of the outdated law
keeping the tax classification of the old and familiar cigarette brands frozen at 1996 prices, the
price of cigarettes has been kept to a minimum, when the price of true necessities such as food,
education, healthcare, and utilities have increased.
The primary goal of the Sin Tax Bill is to reduce the consumption of these sin products
while channeling a significant portion of the revenue gained to Universal Health Care. The Sin
Tax is, first and foremost, an Anti-Cancer Tax with the long-term goal of improving the health of
not just one single market, but the health of the entire nation.
The Sin Tax Bill is not about money. Let the accountants, executives, and Big Tobacco
companies squabble about pesos. We are here to save lives. The Sin Tax Bill is designed to
provide much-needed funds to health services. This is not a fight between smokers and nonsmokers; it is a fight to give Filipinos what they rightfully deserve: a healthcare sector that is
empowered and has the resources to truly care about our peoples health.
RESOURCES:
By www.google.com
http://sintax.ph/