Grant Number:	4R01TW009295-05 Interpret this number
Primary Investigator:	Hu, Teh-Wei
Organization:	Public Health Institute
Project Title:	Tobacco Control Policy Analysis & Intervention Evaluation in China and Tanzania
Fiscal Year:	2016

DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): Under the WHO Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (FCTC), there are two major strategies to control tobacco use: price control (taxes/prices) and non-price control (smoke-free public places, health warnings etc.). The primary focus of this proposal is to apply economic analysis to address tobacco taxation issues and build the evidence base for price control policies in China and Tanzania. A secondary focus is to conduct evaluation of a non-price control policy in China, which has promulgated regulations for smoke-free indoor public places in May 2011. Our research team has made progress in China under the current grant on the economic analysis of the demand and supply of tobacco products and recommendations on the justification of raising additional tobacco tax. However, analysis of the impact of a tax adjustment instituted in 2009 showed that there are many hurdles to effective use of this price control measure. This competing renewal grant proposes to do follow-up tax policy related analysis to address these hurdles. A pilot experiment for a specific excise tax increase is also proposed, as well as a study of the impact of tobacco-related diseases on government rural healthcare expenditure. The proposal also includes an evaluation of a non-price measure, the 2011 regulation on smoke-free indoor public places, to assess the community's knowledge of health risks and support for such regulations. Through professional contact, our research team was approached by the University of Dar-es-Salaam in Tanzania to extend our research experiences and capacity building from China to Tanzania: the demand and supply of tobacco products in order to provide the justification for the Tanzania government to implement tobacco control. If funded, work by our research team in Tanzania will be ground-breaking and will build the foundation of tobacco control research in that country. This competing renewal has the following goals: 1) Continue Chinese tobacco control research in four areas: monitor and evaluate the 2009 tobacco tax adjustment; develop a pilot tobacco tax experiment; study the impact of smoking on government rural health care expenditures; and evaluate the impact of the May 2011 smoke-free public places regulation. 2) Develop Tanzania tobacco control research in three areas: the economic cost of smoking; demand analysis for cigarettes to simulate the impact of tax on consumption and government revenue; and to study the economic return of tobacco farming. 3) Capacity building for tobacco control researchers in China and Tanzania. 4) Engage policymakers in both countries through policy working groups and conferences. The consortium of institutions conducting these studies includes China's Sichuan University, the State Administration of Taxation, and China Centers for Disease Control and the Chinese Association on Tobacco Control, as well as Tanzania's University of Dar-es-Salaam and the Tanzania Tobacco Control Forum.