7% decline in cigarette consumption in 2003. The recent increase in cigarette price/tax variation across and within U.S. states provided an incentive for smokers to look for lower cost cigarette sources. Hyland, Bauer, et al. (2005) found that 34% of heavy adult smokers try to reduce their cost of smoking by getting cigarettes from cheaper sources. This is particularly true selleck chemicals for those smokers who lived within 40 miles of a state border or an Indian reservation that sold cigarettes with a lower excise tax. Living in an area with higher average cigarette prices increases the probability of using discount and/or generic cigarettes (Hyland, Bauer, et al., 2005). The use of these cheaper cigarettes is primarily concentrated among high-intensity and low -ncome smokers (Cummings, Hyland, Lewit, & Shopland, 1997).

One study found that an access to low-taxed cigarettes inhibited quit attempts and possibly quit rates (Hyland, Higbee, et al., 2005). Hyland et al. (2006) studied the use of low/untaxed cigarettes in Australia, Canada, the United Kingdom, and the United States using the survey data employed in this paper. The differences across the countries were attributed to the affordability of cigarettes and the availability of cheaper cigarette sources. Using a low/untaxed source was positively related to age, income, level of education, and to being White and/or speaking English. The association between higher income and buying cigarettes from low/untaxed sources is consistent with a U.S. study (Hyland, Bauer, et al., 2005) that indicates that a minimum set of resources is needed to purchase low/untaxed cigarettes.

Smoking intensity was not a significant predictor of purchasing low/untaxed cigarettes, but those who reported purchasing from a low/untaxed source at Wave 1 were less likely to make a quit attempt at Wave 2 of the survey (Hyland et al., 2006). To summarize, the impact of cigarette prices on smoking cessation has been studied primarily in the United States, and only two studies have examined the impact of cigarette price choices on smoking cessation. Apart from one industry-sponsored study, there is no research evidence on the impact of hypothetical price increase on adult smoking behavior. No study has linked smokers�� expectation about their quit intentions to future quit intentions and quit behavior.

The ITC data from four countries with very different cigarette markets allows us to examine how a proposed future price increase might differentially impact contemplation to stop smoking. This is an important issue since the availability of cigarettes with a wide range of prices may inhibit cessation (Hyland, AV-951 Higbee, et al., 2005; Hyland et al., 2006). Data and Methods This study uses data from the ITC surveys conducted in the United Sates, Canada, the United Kingdom, and Australia among a nationally representative cohort of adult smokers.