Smoking Harms Productivity: TMU Research Shows Taiwan Loses Over NT$100 Billion Annually
Research by Taipei Medical University reveals that smoking causes an annual productivity loss of over NT$100 billion in Taiwan. Each smoker loses an average of over NT$1.35 million in lifetime productivity, significantly exceeding tobacco tax revenues.
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- 📰 Published: May 12, 2026 at 21:56
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Central News Agency
(Central News Agency reporter Tseng Yi-ning, Taipei, 12th) Smoking not only increases the risk of disease, but research by Taipei Medical University's College of Public Health has found that smoking erodes economic momentum. Each smoker loses an average of over NT$1.35 million in lifetime productivity, and Taiwan's annual productivity loss due to smoking reaches over NT$100 billion, far exceeding tobacco tax and health welfare surcharges.
The research was conducted by a team led by Associate Professor Lo Wei-cheng of the Department of Public Health, Taipei Medical University. It was published this year in the international public health journal Public Health and a press conference was held today to announce the research findings.
The research team analyzed long-term tracking data of over 210,000 adult Taiwanese, combining health insurance, death registration, and labor income data to estimate the impact of smoking on "lifetime productivity loss." The results found that the average smoker will lose approximately US$45,000 to US$61,000 in their lifetime, or about NT$1.35 million to NT$1.85 million.
The results show that Taiwan's annual productivity loss due to smoking is as high as approximately US$4.6 billion, or over NT$130 billion, accounting for about 0.6% of the Gross Domestic Product (GDP). It is worth noting that the research team pointed out that this figure exceeds 15% of the annual expenditure of the National Health Insurance and is far higher than the revenue the government obtains from tobacco taxes and tobacco health welfare surcharges.
The research team also analyzed by gender. Smoking men will have an average lifetime salary of US$45,572 (approximately NT$1.3 million) less than non-smokers; the salary loss for smoking women is US$61,552 (approximately NT$1.75 million). This shows that the economic burden caused by smoking has long exceeded the fiscal benefits it brings.
Lo Wei-cheng pointed out that unlike past research that mostly focused on medical expenses, this study emphasizes the concept of "lifetime productivity loss," estimating the economic losses caused by smoking. This includes not only premature death due to health hazards from smoking, but also factors such as reduced work efficiency due to illness, increased absenteeism, and early retirement, all of which weaken the individual and socio-economic contributions of smokers, thereby impacting society as a whole.
The research team also estimated through scenario simulations that if the smoking rate among the entire Taiwanese population is reduced by half, Taiwan can avoid 1.6 million years of life lost due to premature death and create over US$40 billion in lifetime productivity benefits; even a 10% reduction can bring billions of dollars in economic benefits.
Lo Wei-cheng stated that these results clearly show that smoking not only incurs health costs but also high economic costs. (Editor: Hsieh Ya-chu) 1150512
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(Central News Agency reporter Tseng Yi-ning, Taipei, 12th) Smoking not only increases the risk of disease, but research by Taipei Medical University's College of Public Health has found that smoking erodes economic momentum. Each smoker loses an average of over NT$1.35 million in lifetime productivity, and Taiwan's annual productivity loss due to smoking reaches over NT$100 billion, far exceeding tobacco tax and health welfare surcharges.
The research was conducted by a team led by Associate Professor Lo Wei-cheng of the Department of Public Health, Taipei Medical University. It was published this year in the international public health journal Public Health and a press conference was held today to announce the research findings.
The research team analyzed long-term tracking data of over 210,000 adult Taiwanese, combining health insurance, death registration, and labor income data to estimate the impact of smoking on "lifetime productivity loss." The results found that the average smoker will lose approximately US$45,000 to US$61,000 in their lifetime, or about NT$1.35 million to NT$1.85 million.
The results show that Taiwan's annual productivity loss due to smoking is as high as approximately US$4.6 billion, or over NT$130 billion, accounting for about 0.6% of the Gross Domestic Product (GDP). It is worth noting that the research team pointed out that this figure exceeds 15% of the annual expenditure of the National Health Insurance and is far higher than the revenue the government obtains from tobacco taxes and tobacco health welfare surcharges.
The research team also analyzed by gender. Smoking men will have an average lifetime salary of US$45,572 (approximately NT$1.3 million) less than non-smokers; the salary loss for smoking women is US$61,552 (approximately NT$1.75 million). This shows that the economic burden caused by smoking has long exceeded the fiscal benefits it brings.
Lo Wei-cheng pointed out that unlike past research that mostly focused on medical expenses, this study emphasizes the concept of "lifetime productivity loss," estimating the economic losses caused by smoking. This includes not only premature death due to health hazards from smoking, but also factors such as reduced work efficiency due to illness, increased absenteeism, and early retirement, all of which weaken the individual and socio-economic contributions of smokers, thereby impacting society as a whole.
The research team also estimated through scenario simulations that if the smoking rate among the entire Taiwanese population is reduced by half, Taiwan can avoid 1.6 million years of life lost due to premature death and create over US$40 billion in lifetime productivity benefits; even a 10% reduction can bring billions of dollars in economic benefits.
Lo Wei-cheng stated that these results clearly show that smoking not only incurs health costs but also high economic costs. (Editor: Hsieh Ya-chu) 1150512
Choose to stand with facts, every sponsorship you make is a force to protect press freedom.
Download the Central News Agency "First-hand News" APP to stay updated with the latest news.
The text, images, and videos on this website may not be reproduced, publicly broadcast, or publicly transmitted and used without authorization.