The Health Care Costs of Smoking

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Abstract
The conclusion by Barendregt et al. (Oct. 9 issue)1 that smoking cessation would eventually lead to increased health care costs is questionable because the authors underestimate differences in health care use between smokers and nonsmokers. They attribute to smoking the leading smoking-related diseases, including heart disease, stroke, lung and some other cancers, and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease. According to the Surgeon General's reports, smokers are also at higher risk for a variety of other diseases, including pneumonia and influenza, abdominal aortic aneurysm, gastric and duodenal ulcers, and cataracts. Adding these conditions increases by more than 30 percent the estimate of short-term hospital days for diseases linked to smoking.2

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