Tobacco Tax Has People Calling Quit Smoking Lines

By: | WSPA-TV
Published: April 01, 2009

It's a hard habit to break, but adding sixty-two cents to the price of a pack of cigarettes may just break the bank in this tough economy and force people to snuff out cigarettes for good.
Darell Eisen says, "It is easier to quit when the price goes up because you don't have the money for it."
He says he could barely afford the habit before the increase.
He adds, "This is my last pack right here I promise you."
1-800-QUIT-NOW phone lines have been flooded across the country today with people unwilling to shell out the extra cash to keep their cigarettes.
Raymond Hawkins says he's not surprised. He says, "I will probably call that number."
At two packs a week he says that adds up to about 40 bucks a month.
"I am spending more money on cigarettes than i do on gas. I think it is time to quit."
The tobacco tax money will go to help pay for insurance for low-income children in the U.S., but doctors say they hope adults will reap other benefits from it.
Oncologist Dr. Christophe Nguyn at Spartanburg Regional Medical Center says, “I think increasing it where its sensitive in the pocketbook will hopefully affect them.
He says most lethal cancers are related to smoking and lung cancer remains the number one killer in our state.
According to Nguyn, “It is so powerful the addiction most all my patients are smokers.”
He says the cessation programs work if people will stick to them and hopefully this time their budget will force them to do so.
Dr. Nguyn says if you quit smoking a person can get their lungs back to healthy levels like a non-smoker in about 8 years.
If you would like help kicking the habit you can call toll free..1-800-QUIT-NOW.
You'll be able to talk to a trained specialist in your state.
Lung cancer kills about three thousand South Carolinians each year.
Cigarette smoking has also been linked to pancreatic, esophageal and gastric cancers.
Cigarette smokers have to pay 62 cents more per pack.
Cigar smokers about 40 cents extra.
Revenue from the new tax will help pay for a health insurance program for low-income children.