Smoking costs an average of more than $2.3 million over a Kentucky resident’s lifetime, finance site WalletHub reports, making the commonwealth the sixth most expensive state for the activity.
The out of pocket cost is much lower, but still more than $120,000.
The total annual cost breaks down to $48,785, or $2,529 out of pocket, in Kentucky. WalletHub includes factors such as financial opportunity cost, income loss, health care expenses and other costs in the estimate.
Kentucky has the second-highest adult smoking rate in the nation, according to previous Herald-Leader reporting, and the commonwealth had the highest lung and bronchus cancer rate in the U.S. from 2014 to 2018.
Here’s how each state performed in WalletHub’s rating:
Cost of smoking in Kentucky
Here’s how Kentucky’s average smoking costs break down, according to WalletHub:
Lifetime costs per smoker
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Total lifetime costs: $2,341,694 (6th most expensive in U.S.)
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Lifetime out-of-pocket cost: $121,414 (11th most expensive in U.S.)
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Financial opportunity cost: $1,625,016 (11th most expensive in U.S.)
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Health care costs: $133,218 (6th most expensive in U.S.)
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Income loss: $451,336 (7th highest in U.S.)
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Other costs: $10,710 (8th highest in U.S.)
Cost per smoker per year
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Total cost per year: $48,785
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Out-of-pocket cost: $2,529
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Financial opportunity cost: $33,854
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Health care cost: $2,775
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Income loss: $9,403
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Other costs: $223
How were average Kentucky costs estimated?
WalletHub calculated out-of-pocket costs by taking the average cost of a pack of cigarettes in each state and multiplying it by 365 days for the yearly cost and 48 years worth of one pack per day for the lifetime cost.
The lifetime cost is based on someone who smokes a pack every day from age 21 to 69, the average age at which a smoker dies, according to WalletHub.
The financial opportunity cost was determined by calculating the amount of return a person would have earned by investing cigarette money into the stock market, using the historical average market return rate for the S&P 500, minus the inflation rate.
“Direct medical costs to treat smoking-connected health complications are one of the biggest financial drains caused by tobacco use,” WalletHub’s article reads.
Health care costs were based on state-level data from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention on annual health care costs caused by smoking.
Income loss was estimated at 18%, based on a survey from National Longitudinal Surveys that found smokers earn an average of 18.1% less than non-smokers. Possible reasons for the gap include absenteeism, workplace bias and lower productivity due to smoking-related health problems.
The calculation for “other costs” includes an 11.1% increase in homeowner’s insurance costs, as non-smokers generally receive credits between 5% and 15%, WalletHub says.
Additionally, the other costs category includes a price for the effect smoke has on non-smokers.
“This approach assumes that, in a perfect society, smokers would also pay the costs related to the harmful smoke that tobacco releases into the air,” WalletHub’s article says.
The second-hand smoke cost was based on the per non-smoker expenditure in the state of New York, multiplied by the number of non-smokers in each state, divided by the number of smokers in each state.
Data sources included the CDC, U.S. Census Bureau, Insurance Information Institute and Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids.
Assistance with quitting smoking
Melinda J. Ickes, professor and director of graduate studies at the University of Kentucky’s Department of Kinesiology and Health Promotion, told WalletHub best practices for adults to stop smoking include combining behavioral therapy with medicine.
“I think for many it is easy to forget that tobacco dependence is a chronic disease,” Ickes said. “Most individuals who smoke or use any form of tobacco, including smokeless, e-cigarettes, etc., make multiple quit attempts before succeeding and the majority require repeated cessation interventions.”
Quitting smoking “cold turkey” and doing it on your own is challenging, Ickes added.
“Nicotine dependence causes physiological changes that oftentimes lead to relapse. This is why the support of pharmacotherapy and behavioral support is most beneficial,” Ickes continued.
More than 23% of Kentucky adults smoked cigarettes in 2019, according to the CDC, and 29.7% of the commonwealth’s high school youth reported using any tobacco product, including e-cigarettes.
“Tobacco use is the leading cause of preventable death in the United States and around the world,” Kentucky’s Cabinet for Health and Family Services reports. “Every year more than 8,000 Kentuckians die of illnesses caused by smoking.”
For help quitting tobacco use, you can call Quit Now Kentucky at 800-784-8669 or text QUITNOW to 333888. Online assistance is also available.
Do you have a question about health in Kentucky for our service journalism team? We’d like to hear from you. Fill out our Know Your Kentucky form or email ask@herald-leader.com.
Meredith Howard is a service journalist with the Belleville News-Democrat. She is a Baylor University graduate and has previously freelanced with the Illinois Times and the Pulitzer Center on Crisis Reporting.
