Surveying the Damage

On Oct. 25th, a coalition of health groups released a report on the effects of the 1994 tobacco tax rollback, which saw cigarette prices cut in half in much of the country. The four groups (Canadian Cancer Society, Non-Smokers’ Rights Association, Physicians for a Smoke-Free Canada and the Québec Coalition for Tobacco Control) held simultaneous press conferences in Ottawa and Montreal to press demands for a $10 per carton tax increase in the five low-tax provinces (Ontario, Quebec, New Brunswick, Nova Scotia and PEI).