Effect of the Australian “Alcopops Tax” on Alcohol-Related Emergency Department Presentations for Injury in Two States

Lensvelt, Eveline; Liang, Wenbin; Gilmore, William; Gordon, Elise; Hobday, Michelle; Chikritzhs, Tanya

doi:10.15288/jsad.2016.77.730

Cited by 17 publications

(15 citation statements)

References 0 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Order By: Relevance

“…Our finding that the alcopops tax significantly reduced chlamydia test positivity rates among males aged 15-24 (lagged) and 25-34 (immediate) adds to the findings from studies from New South Wales [8], Western Australia and Victoria [16], all of which showed reductions in injury rates among males in these age groups following the introduction of the tax. It is of interest that we did not find an association between the alcopops tax and chlamydia test positivity rates among females, as the NSW study found that both the GST and alcopops tax had strong negative associations with ED attendances in 18-24-year-old females [8].…”

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 70%

“…In WA, the new tax was associated with immediate decreases in injury among 12-19-year-olds and delayed decreases among 20-29-year-olds. In Victoria, immediate decreases in injury rates were seen among 15-19-year-olds with delayed decreases among 20-29-year-olds [16].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 98%

“…To date, all five studies that have evaluated the impact of RTD taxes on alcohol-related harms among young people have been conducted in Australia (across four states) and have examined associations with levels of emergency department (ED) attendance or hospitalisation [8,[16][17][18][19]. Three studies conducted by a research group in the state of Queensland found no association between the alcopops tax and ED attendance or hospitalisation among 15-29-year-olds [17][18][19].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 2 more Smart Citations

The Association between the Australian Alcopops Tax and National Chlamydia Rates among Young People—an Interrupted Time Series Analysis

Gilmore

Chikritzhs

McManus

et al. 2020

IJERPH

Self Cite

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

A national tax increase, which became known as the “alcopops tax”, was introduced in Australia on the 27th April 2008 on ready-to-drink alcoholic beverages, which are consumed predominantly by young people. The affordability of alcohol has been identified as the strongest environmental driver of alcohol consumption, and alcohol consumption is a well-known risk factor in the spread of sexually transmitted infections via its association with sexual risk-taking. We conducted a study to investigate whether there was any association between the introduction of the tax and changes in national chlamydia rates: (i) notification rates (diagnoses per 100,000 population; primary outcome and standard approach in alcohol taxation studies), and (ii) test positivity rates (diagnoses per 100 tests; secondary outcome) among 15–24 and 25–34-year-olds, using interrupted time series analysis. Gender- and age-specific chlamydia trends among those 35 and older were applied as internal control series and gender- and age-specific consumer price index-adjusted per capita income trends were controlled for as independent variables. We hypothesised that the expected negative association between the tax and chlamydia notification rates might be masked due to increasing chlamydia test counts over the observation period (2000 to 2016). We hypothesised that the association between the tax and chlamydia test positivity rates would occur as an immediate level decrease, as a result of a decrease in alcohol consumption, which, in turn, would lead to a decrease in risky sexual behaviour and, hence, chlamydia transmission. None of the gender and age-specific population-based rates indicated a significant immediate or lagged association with the tax. However, we found an immediate decrease in test positivity rates for 25–34-year-old males (27% reduction—equivalent to 11,891 cases prevented post-tax) that remained detectable up to a lag of six months and a decrease at a lag of six months for 15–24-year-old males (31% reduction—equivalent to 16,615 cases prevented) following the tax. For no other gender or age combination did the change in test positivity rates reach significance. This study adds to the evidence base supporting the use of alcohol taxation to reduce health-related harms experienced by young people and offers a novel method for calculating sexually transmitted infection rates for policy evaluation.

show abstract

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 70%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 98%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 1 more Smart Citation

The Association between the Australian Alcopops Tax and National Chlamydia Rates among Young People—an Interrupted Time Series Analysis

Gilmore

Chikritzhs

McManus

et al. 2020

IJERPH

Self Cite

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…These are encouraging trends and demonstrate the need to provide environments for young people that support and encourage abstention among minors and safe levels of drinking among adults. At the same time, however, there have been significant increases in alcohol-related harms, particularly among teenagers and young adults (Lensvelt et al, 2015), suggesting the need to better understand the broad range of influences on drinking behaviors and associated risks.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Smokescreens and Beer Goggles

Jones

Wyatt

Daube

2016

Social Marketing Quarterly

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Corporate social marketing (CSM) is one of several initiatives companies can undertake to demonstrate their corporate social responsibility (CSR). While there are many motivations for CSR and CSM, all are linked to profit in some way, including promoting the reputation of the organization. While CSM is often seen as evidence of organizations making a contribution to their community, there are some industries whose CSM campaigns have drawn considerable controversy and criticism. This article discusses the role of the alcohol industry in developing and disseminating “responsible drinking” CSM activities. It discusses some of the problems identified with alcohol industry CSM campaigns—including evidence that industry education campaigns communicate ambiguous messages; improve public perceptions of the industry but do not discourage harmful or underage drinking; and divert attention from more effective approaches, such as controls on price and availability. The paper also addresses the issue of other CSM/CRM activities undertaken by the alcohol industry, such as encouraging consumers to purchase a brand by donating a proportion of the profits to health and social causes (including those that are exacerbated by alcohol consumption). It discusses the value of these activities for the industry and their potential negative impact on the health of the community. In summary, the evidence suggests that industry CSM and CRM activities protect the industry (from restrictive policies and declining sales) but may in fact be detrimental to the community.

show abstract

“…The proxy measure used in this study has not been explicitly validated for Aboriginal Australians. Proxy measures have been widely used in previous research into community-level alcohol-related ED presentations for the general population in Australia, which includes Aboriginal Australians [13,48,49], but this is the first study to use the proxy measures to investigate alcohol-related injuries specifically for Aboriginal Australians with ED data. Further work on validating proxy measures for Aboriginal Australians is required [50].…”

Section: Methodological Limitationsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Factors Associated with Alcohol-Related Injuries for Aboriginal and Non-Aboriginal Australians: An Observational Study

Snijder

Calabria

Dobbins

et al. 2020

IJERPH

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Alcohol use and related injuries are a leading risk factor for deaths and disabilities in Australia, particularly for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people. An improved understanding of individual and geographical community characteristics that are significantly associated with higher rates of alcohol-related injuries for specific populations can contribute to more effective efforts aimed at reducing alcohol-related injuries. For Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal Australians in New South Wales, this study used emergency department (ED) data to investigate rates of alcohol-related injuries, whether differences in rates vary between communities, and individual and community characteristics significantly associated with alcohol-related injuries. Differences in rates of alcohol-related injuries between Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal people varied significantly between communities. Being younger than 38 years old was significantly associated with increased risk of alcohol-related injuries, independent of Aboriginal status and gender. Increased disadvantage of the geographical community inhabited was associated with increased alcohol-related injuries for males. For Aboriginal males, living in a regional community was significantly associated with increased alcohol-related injuries, compared to living in major cities. Conversely, for non-Aboriginal people, living in regional communities was significantly associated with fewer alcohol-related injuries. It is therefore likely that an explanation for between-community differences can be found in regional communities.

show abstract

Effect of the Australian “Alcopops Tax” on Alcohol-Related Emergency Department Presentations for Injury in Two States

Cited by 17 publications

References 0 publications

The Association between the Australian Alcopops Tax and National Chlamydia Rates among Young People—an Interrupted Time Series Analysis

The Association between the Australian Alcopops Tax and National Chlamydia Rates among Young People—an Interrupted Time Series Analysis

Smokescreens and Beer Goggles

Factors Associated with Alcohol-Related Injuries for Aboriginal and Non-Aboriginal Australians: An Observational Study

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About