CDC: Cigarette taxes rose in 14 states last year

ATLANTA – Fourteen states, the nation's capital and the federal government hiked their cigarette taxes last year, but health officials worry that tobacco company discounts are keeping prices down.
State increases ranged from 10 cents per pack in North Carolina to $1 in Connecticut, Florida and Rhode Island. Meanwhile, manufacturers devote billions of dollars on marketing and on promotions to reduce cigarette prices.
"The industry is aggressively moving to undercut and blunt these taxes," said Terry Pechacek, associate director for science in the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's Office on Smoking and Health.

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