State Cigarette Taxes, Smoking, and Implications for the Educational Gradient in Mortality

Alicia Riley , University of Chicago

It is taken as a social fact that less educated people live sicker, shorter lives. But educational disparities in mortality in the U.S. have widened in in recent decades. Concurrent with these changes, the U.S. has seen a divergence in state policies. In this evolving political landscape, state-level policy is increasingly consequential for population health. This study explores the potential for a specific state policy to moderate the educational gradient in mortality. I draw on data from two nationally representative longitudinal surveys (PSID and NSHAP) to test how cigarette tax level moderates the educational gradient in mortality. Initial models suggest that higher state cigarette taxes weaken the educational gradient in mortality. Higher taxes have a stronger protective effect against mortality for the low educated, particularly for men. This study contributes to an emergent body of research highlighting the ways that fundamental causes are contingent on state policy.

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 Presented in Session 139. Political Determinants of Health and Mortality