Dec 31, 2019
Study suggests taxes on e-cigarettes have an unintended consequence
A new NBER paper finds that taxes on e-cigarettes create barriers for adults looking to use e-cigarettes as a safer alternative to smoking.
People take part in a rally at the steps of City Hall after New York City Council vote on legislation to ban flavored e-cigarettes on November 26, 2019.
Eduardo Munoz Alvarez/Getty Images
The FDA officially raised the national minimum age to buy tobacco and e-cigarettes from 18 to 21. The move was the latest in a string of recent efforts to restrict access to e-cigarettes — several states had raised the minimum age themselves, and have also imposed heavy taxes on the sale of e-cigarettes. Meanwhile, a paper out this week found that taxing the sale of e-cigarettes can have an unexpected consequence.
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