The Effect of E-Cigarette Taxes on Pre-pregnancy and Prenatal Smoking

Rahi Abouk, Scott Adams, Bo Feng, Johanna Catherine Maclean, Michael F. Pesko

NBER Working Paper No. 26126
Issued in July 2019, Revised in June 2020
NBER Program(s):Health Economics

We use the universe of birth records in the United States from 2013 to 2018 to examine the effect of e-cigarette tax rates on pre-pregnancy smoking and prenatal smoking. We study these questions using two-way fixed effects models and pregnancy fixed effects models. We show that e-cigarette taxes increase pre-pregnancy smoking, increase prenatal smoking, and lower smoking cessation during pregnancy. These findings imply that e-cigarettes and traditional cigarettes are substitutes among pregnant women. We also find evidence that e-cigarette taxes reduce pre-pregnancy and third trimester e-cigarette use.

Acknowledgments

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Document Object Identifier (DOI): 10.3386/w26126