We, the Philippine Heart
Association, a non-stock, non-profit organization of heart and vascular
specialists in the country, strongly support the passage of Senate Bill 3249 - An Act Restructuring
the Excise Taxes on Alcohol and Tobacco Products (corresponding to a revised version
of House Bill 5727), or the Sin Tax
Bill.
There are compelling reasons why
the Sin Tax bill must be passed.
We recognize that the right to health is a fundamental
right that is maintained in Article II, Section 15 of the Constitution – which
states that – “The State shall protect and promote the right to health of the
people and as a policy instill health consciousness among them.”
We belong to a society whose sworn
Hippocratic mandate is to prevent and treat diseases of the heart and blood
vessels. It is our moral responsibility and our collective duty to support
initiatives that will impact on the prevalent tobacco consumption in the
country. We support reforms to the current excise tax system on cigarettes and
other tobacco products.
Tobacco tax reform is in keeping with the provisions
of the WHO’s Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (WHO-FCTC) of which the
Philippines is a signatory since September 2003. FCTC is the first public
health treaty negotiated under the auspices of the WHO which reaffirms the
right of all people to the highest standards of health.
Cigarette smoke contains nearly
4,000 chemicals of which 60 are proven cancer-causing agents1. We cannot stand
idle as 60 carcinogens are easily and legitimately available for everyone to
enjoy. We deplore how tobacco can be an easily accessible and generally
affordable commodity for everyone’s death, disease, addiction and
self-destruction.
Ten Filipinos die from tobacco use every hour. Smoking
is the most common risk factor associated with deaths due to stroke and heart
attack in the Philippines. CIGARETTE SMOKING KILLS - nearly 87,600 Filipinos
every year (or 240 deaths every day) 2 – which is HIGHER than other risk factors like diabetes, hypertension,
obesity and high cholesterol.
As a tobacco-growing country, the
Philippines has one of the highest prevalence rates of smoking in the Western
Pacific Region. Based on the 7th National Nutrition and Health
Survey II (NNHeS II, 2008), the prevalence of smoking remains alarmingly high
at 31% - thus, an estimated 25 million of the population aged 18 years are
current and previous smokers. The 2009 Philippines Global Adult Tobacco Survey
(GATS) estimates that more than 17 million of the population aged 15 years and
above currently smoke tobacco.
SEVEN out the ten leading causes of mortality in the
Philippines are smoking-related. Based on only four smoking-related illnesses
(lung cancer, cardiovascular diseases, coronary artery disease and chronic
obstructive pulmonary disease), the economic burden due to healthcare costs and
productivity losses amount to a staggering 218 to 416 billion pesos annually2.
We believe that TAXATION DETERS
USAGE. Increasing the price of tobacco through higher taxes is the SINGLE MOST
EFFECTIVE way to reduce consumption and encourage tobacco users to quit 3,5. The Southeast Asia
Tobacco Control Alliance (SEATCA) noted that a 70% increase in the price of
tobacco could prevent up to a quarter of all smoking-related deaths worldwide.
Philippines has one of the lowest prices of cigarettes
(and alcohol) in the Asean region, which gives the poor and the youth easy
access to both. Compared with many other Asean neighbours, the Philippines has
the highest per capita consumption of cigarettes in 2007, one of the lowest
prices of cigarettes and the lowest taxes imposed 4.
Lifestyle-related diseases affect
both rich and poor, but most unfortunately, especially the poor. Smoking rates
are highest among the poor in the Asean region, who will suffer from the cost
of long-term treatment and unhealthy lifestyles. The poorest sector spends more
for tobacco than for education, clothing, even for health.
Most importantly, we recognize that SB 3249 provides
for allocation of incremental revenues to finance the universal health care
program of the government. One such area that will receive exclusive allocation
is the prevention and control of non-communicable diseases – which is clearly
aligned with our Society’s goals.
Thus, PHA unequivocally supports this bill which will
provide for the following:
a.
Significant increase in tax rates
b.
Removal of price classification freeze on
cigarettes
c.
Unitary
tax for all cigarettes and alcohol products
d.
Indexation
of tax rates to gross domestic product (to ensure that tobacco and alcohol
products do d. not become more affordable as income
increases over time)
e.
Allocation
of incremental revenues to universal health care system
f.
Earmarking
of funds for programs to help tobacco farmers
The cardiovascular disease epidemic
continues to exact a heavy burden on the citizenry and the economy. Cigarette
smoking lurks behind this epidemic as the most significant risk factor that
relentlessly ravages the youth, saps the meagre resources of the poor and
viciously destroys lives, families and futures. Concrete and decisive steps
must be taken to protect the people from the disabling and fatal effects of
tobacco. The passage of SB 3249 is a major step towards this direction.
We, as healers of hearts and advocates of heart
wellness, believe that it is our moral responsibility to lend our voice and
support to this crucial law. We strongly urge our lawmakers to pass the Sin Tax
bill NOW.
PHILIPPINE HEART
ASSOCIATION
1 American Cancer Society; 2 Tobacco Control Strategy 2011-2016, DOH; 3 Southeast Asian Tobacco Control Alliance; 4 MPOWER Report, WHO, 2009; 5 MPOWER Report, WHO, 2011
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