Massachusetts Says Menthol Cigarette Ban Saved $70M in Health Costs

BOSTON (WBSM) — The Massachusetts Department of Public Health is touting how much money has been saved in smoking-related health care due to the Commonwealth’s ban on flavored tobacco products.

State Report Highlights Impact of Tobacco Flavor Ban

MassDPH released a report on Monday on the impact of the legislation, known as An Act Modernizing Tobacco Control, stating it has saved more than $70 million in associated health care costs since it went into effect in 2020.

“Commemorating five years since the enactment of this historic legislation with the knowledge that this law is saving lives and money is one more way to highlight the transformative impact thoughtful policy can have on improving lives and reducing long-term health costs,” Public Health Commissioner Robbie Goldstein, MD, PhD, said in a release.

Menthol Cigarette Ban Linked to Drop in Smoking Rates

Under the legislation, flavored tobacco products, including menthol cigarettes, can only be sold in licensed smoking bars and only for on-site consumption. According to MassDPH, the report, which focused solely on menthol-flavored tobacco products, concluded that restricting menthol cigarette sales “reduced smoking prevalence in Massachusetts by 1.37 percentage points between June 2020 and January 2023.”

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While that may not seem like a significant decrease, MassDPH said “economists projected reductions in chronic diseases and resulting health care costs for lung cancer, heart attack, and stroke; and reductions in smoking-related birth/pregnancy complications and related health care costs for the children of these pregnancies during their first year of life.”

“Adjusted for inflation, the projected 10-year cost savings were close to $200 million,” according to MassDPH. “Projected cost savings do not account for savings from other conditions that may be affected by smoking, such as asthma. Therefore, the projected cost savings are likely underestimated.”

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As for any negative fiscal side effects of the menthol ban, MassDPH reported that a separate analysis “showed that the law has not had a negative effect on the number of tobacco stores, convenience stores, and convenience stores with gas stations that sell tobacco products, the number of employees of these stores, and the wages paid to employees.”