An analysis has calculated the true economic costs of smoking for each state, including the lifetime cost, cost per year, and the healthcare costs per smoker.
The report was created and published by WalletHub, whose analysts gauged the true per-person cost of smoking in each of the 50 states and the District of Columbia.
Key findings include:
- Estimated financial cost of smoking over a lifetime per smoker: just above $1,5 million.
- The out-of-pocket cost per smoker is $120,111 over a lifetime. Smokers in New York will pay the highest costs, $194,341, which is 2.3 times higher than in North Dakota, where smokers will pay the lowest costs at $84,140.
- The financial-opportunity cost per smoker is $1,011,762 over a lifetime. Smokers in New York will pay the highest costs, $1,637,046, which is 2.3 times higher than in North Dakota, where smokers will pay the lowest costs at $708,759.
- Each smoker will incur an average of $222,915 in income loss over a lifetime. Smokers in Maryland will lose the highest amount, $304,168, which is 1.9 times higher than in Mississippi, where smokers will lose the lowest amount at $161,833.
- Each smoker will incur an average of $169,910 in smoking-related health-care costs over a lifetime. Smokers in Massachusetts will pay the highest amount, $280,080, which is 2.5 times higher than in Arkansas, where smokers will pay the lowest amount at $110,583.
Read the full report here.
