Smoking Is On The Decline Yet Louisiana Still Spends Millions

Over the last 10 years, there has been a steep drop in the number of adults who smoke cigarettes, but Louisiana still spends millions at the counter.

• Over 10 million Americans have quit smoking since 2012
• The U.S. spends over $600 billion due to smoking
  • Including medical care for smoking-related health risks

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More Smokers in Louisiana

According to Truth Initiative, a tobacco health risk awareness group, 16.7% of adults in the state smoke cigarettes. According to the CDC, that sits higher than the rest of the country where only 11.6% of the country smokes.

The Cost of A Lifetime

WalletHub put together a study to find out how much a smoker spends in a lifetime, according to each state. The average lifespan of a smoker is 69 years old, so WalletHub estimated how much money it would cost a smoker over 69 years to keep up the habit.

In Louisiana, over a lifetime, a smoker would spend about $3,003,211, including the cost of tobacco, healthcare costs, income loss, and the financial opportunity that it could cost. Over a year it would cost an estimated $62,375.

Over a lifetime it is estimated that the average Louisiana smoker would spend $126,144 out of pocket just purchasing tobacco. The health care cost comes out to $151,108.

In a year, a Louisiana smoker spends an estimated $2,628 out of pocket on tobacco and $3,148 on health care.

Expert Advice on Quitting Smoking

Marietta Orlowski, Ph.D. and Professor of Population & Public Health Services at Wright State University provides some advice on some effective ways to quit smoking. Orlowski says a helpful tactic to quit smoking would be a supportive social surrounding, "social support networks can help us cope with stress, distract us from urges to smoke, and help us build new supporting behaviors."