OBJECTIVES: Smoking is an important risk factor leading to many diseases, which brings substantial healthcare costs as well as indirect costs due to decreased productivity. This article aims to quantify the social costs of smoking in the Czech Republic in 2019. METHODS: The prevalence-based, cost-of-illness approach is used, which assesses the costs as the sum of direct (healthcare) costs and indirect costs (productivity losses due to mortality and morbidity). The costs of healthcare utilization and pharmacotherapy in direct costs, and the costs of absenteeism, presenteeism, and premature mortality in indirect costs, are included. RESULTS: Total costs of smoking in the Czech Republic in 2019 are estimated as 2110.6 million EUR (0.94% of GDP). Direct costs amounted to 537.0 million EUR (2.9% of health expenditures in 2019) and indirect costs were 1573.6 million EUR, mainly driven by the costs of premature mortality (1062.5 million EUR). CONCLUSIONS: Despite the declining trend in the prevalence of smoking in the Czech Republic, the associated costs are considerable. Investments into strategies to reduce smoking continue to be needed.

• Keywords
• I12, I18,
• MeSH
• Absenteeism MeSH
• Adult MeSH
• Smoking * economics   epidemiology   MeSH
• Middle Aged MeSH
• Humans MeSH
• Health Care Costs * statistics & numerical data   MeSH
• Cost of Illness * MeSH
• Mortality, Premature MeSH
• Presenteeism economics   statistics & numerical data   MeSH
• Prevalence MeSH
• Aged MeSH
• Health Expenditures * statistics & numerical data   MeSH
• Check Tag
• Adult MeSH
• Middle Aged MeSH
• Humans MeSH
• Male MeSH
• Aged MeSH
• Female MeSH
• Publication type
• Journal Article MeSH
• Geographicals
• Czech Republic epidemiology   MeSH

Increasing prevalence of obesity (BMI > 30) is a pressing public health issue in the Czech Republic as well as world-wide, affecting up to 2.1 billion people. Increasing trend in the prevalence of obesity in adults and children generates large social costs. The main aim of this study is to estimate both direct and indirect costs of obesity in the Czech Republic. Social costs of obesity are estimated using the cost-of-illness approach. Direct costs (healthcare utilization costs and costs of pharmacotherapy of 20 comorbidities) are estimated using the top-down approach, while indirect costs (absenteeism, presenteeism and premature mortality) are estimated using the human capital approach. In aggregate, the annual costs attributable to obesity in the Czech Republic in 2018 were 40.8 bn CZK (1.6 bn EUR, 0.8% GDP). Direct costs were 14.5 bn CZK (0.6 bn EUR) and accounted for 3.4% of Czech healthcare expenditures. The highest healthcare utilization costs were attributable to type II diabetes (20.6%), ischemic heart disease (18.8%) and osteoarthritis (16.7%). The largest indirect costs were attributable to premature mortality (10 bn CZK/0.39 bn EUR), absenteeism (9.2 bn CZK/0.36 bn EUR) and presenteeism (7.1 bn CZK/0.27 bn EUR). This article demonstrates that obesity is a serious problem with considerable costs. Several preventive interventions should be applied in order to decrease the prevalence of obesity and achieve cost savings.

• Keywords
• Cost-of-illness study, Czech Republic, Obesity, Social costs,
• MeSH
• Diabetes Mellitus, Type 2 * MeSH
• Child MeSH
• Adult MeSH
• Humans MeSH
• Costs and Cost Analysis MeSH
• Health Care Costs MeSH
• Obesity epidemiology   MeSH
• Cost of Illness MeSH
• Delivery of Health Care MeSH
• Check Tag
• Child MeSH
• Adult MeSH
• Humans MeSH
• Publication type
• Journal Article MeSH
• Geographicals
• Czech Republic epidemiology   MeSH

BACKGROUND: The Czech Republic has one of the poorest tobacco control records in Europe. This paper examines transnational tobacco companies' (TTCs') efforts to influence policy there, paying particular attention to excise policies, as high taxes are one of the most effective means of reducing tobacco consumption, and tax structures are an important aspect of TTC competitiveness. METHODS AND FINDINGS: TTC documents dating from 1989 to 2004/5 were retrieved from the Legacy Tobacco Documents Library website, analysed using a socio-historical approach, and triangulated with key informant interviews and secondary data. The documents demonstrate significant industry influence over tobacco control policy. Philip Morris (PM) ignored, overturned, and weakened various attempts to restrict tobacco advertising, promoting voluntary approaches as an alternative to binding legislation. PM and British American Tobacco (BAT) lobbied separately on tobacco tax structures, each seeking to implement the structure that benefitted its own brand portfolio over that of its competitors, and enjoying success in turn. On excise levels, the different companies took a far more collaborative approach, seeking to keep tobacco taxes low and specifically to prevent any large tax increases. Collective lobbying, using a variety of arguments, was successful in delaying the tax increases required via European Union accession. Contrary to industry arguments, data show that cigarettes became more affordable post-accession and that TTCs have taken advantage of low excise duties by raising prices. Interview data suggest that TTCs enjoy high-level political support and continue to actively attempt to influence policy. CONCLUSION: There is clear evidence of past and ongoing TTC influence over tobacco advertising and excise policy. We conclude that this helps explain the country's weak tobacco control record. The findings suggest there is significant scope for tobacco tax increases in the Czech Republic and that large (rather than small, incremental) increases are most effective in reducing smoking.

• MeSH
• Taxes economics   legislation & jurisprudence   MeSH
• Documentation * MeSH
• European Union MeSH
• Social Control, Formal MeSH
• Advertising economics   legislation & jurisprudence   MeSH
• Humans MeSH
• Commerce MeSH
• Income MeSH
• Interviews as Topic MeSH
• Tobacco Industry economics   legislation & jurisprudence   MeSH
• Public Policy economics   legislation & jurisprudence   MeSH
• Check Tag
• Humans MeSH
• Publication type
• Journal Article MeSH
• Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't MeSH
• Research Support, N.I.H., Extramural MeSH
• Geographicals
• Czech Republic MeSH