Cigarettes $150-$222 a pack?

[Charlotteman]

Cigarettes $150 a pack??? $222 a pack?????

The other day I was at a grocery store in Bremerton, Washington (near Seattle) and noticed that a pack of Marlboros was $10.89. I was absolutely stunned, and I asked the cashier if I was seeing correctly. Then later that day I learned the same brand is selling for even more in Boston and NYC.

I quit smoking 31 years ago. Back then you could get three packs for a dollar, in local North Carolina drive throughs.

But studies have shown that the true cost per pack is between $150-222 a pack. That's when you factor in extra medical costs related to smoking, lowered lifespan, lowered work productivity, etc.

A study done by the Journal of Health Economics in 2004, showed the "true price" to be around $222 a pack. Other recent studies in Spain in the US have cigarettes starting at $150 a pack, and up.