Changes in North Carolina spurring smokers to quit
GREENSBORO — This past week’s news about cigarettes — whopping tax increases, public limits on their use and possible new federal regulation — has left Triad smokers gasping for breath.
What will they do now — shell out more money for a pack of smokes, quit or what?
For Lawrence Nelson, a 66-year-old retiree from High Point, it came down to a case of sticker shock. He didn’t want to spend $50 for a carton of Lucky Strikes.
“When they went up $8 a carton, I refused to pay it,” Nelson said Thursday. “I quit when the tax went up. Everybody is quitting.”
For people like Nelson who smoke, grow or sell tobacco, it’s been a tough week.
l On Wednesday, the federal tax on cigarettes jumped 62 cents a pack, rising from 39 cents to $1.01.
l On Thursday, the state House voted to ban smoking in most public places.
l Also on Thursday, the U.S. House agreed to give the Food and Drug Administration broad new authority to regulate tobacco.
On top of that, last month, Gov. Bev Perdue proposed increasing the state tax on cigarettes from 35 cents a pack to $1.35.
“I think the government is trying to put us out of business,” said Michael Clapp, a Guilford County farmer who grows 110 acres of tobacco. “With the increase in taxes, people are going to quit smoking .... Where does that leave me? Without a job.”
Opponents of the increase say it will cost North Carolina 3,000 jobs and up to $36 million in revenue. Supporters say it will save lives.
Some smokers already have quit, or at least, they’re trying.
The state’s stop-smoking line — 1-800-QUIT-NOW — has seen a 52 percent increase in calls from February to March. And inquiries are rising even faster in April. If the trend continues, call volume will increase 152 percent this month.
“People can’t afford to smoke anymore,” said Becca Jones, wellness coordinator for the Moses Cone Health System, which provides quit-smoking classes for its employees. “We’ve had a lot of employees call, saying they want to get involved in the next class .... They’ve expressed that it is for financial reasons.”
The rise in cigarette prices has also involved increases tacked on by manufacturers. Last month, the major makers, including Lorillard Tobacco Co., raised the cost of a pack from 70 to 80 cents in anticipation of the tax hike.
Lorillard officials declined to comment Friday.
Health educators say they’re celebrating the tax hike covering cigars and “roll-your-own” tobacco, plus the other price increases.
A pack of Lucky Strikes now costs $5.28.
“We know from the evidence that raising the price of cigarettes is one of the primary reasons that people quit smoking,” said Mary Gillett, coordinator of the Tobacco Use Prevention Coalition, a part of the Guilford County Department of Public Health. “We expect to see a great deal of interest in cessation because of the tax increase.”
But the tax hike, in a state where 22 percent of the population still smokes, has left plenty of others unhappy.
“People are angry,” said Bhavin Petel, vice president of Charlie’s Tobacco Outlet in High Point. “They need the cigarettes, but they can’t afford them.”
Petel, who doesn’t smoke, isn’t happy either. He said his business has declined between 25 percent and 40 percent this week
He said his customers have switched to cheaper, generic brands, cut back, or, like Nelson, quit.
“I’m going to stick with it,” said Nelson, who has smoked for 40 some years. “I needed to quit anyway.”
But that doesn’t mean he approves of what’s going on. “It doesn’t make sense,” he said. “This is a tobacco state. Why are we going to ban tobacco?”
Contact Donald W. Patterson at 373-7027 or don.patterson@news-record.com
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