The 13th World Conference on Tobacco OR Health

In February 2005, the Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (FCTC) became international law. This initiative introduces regulatory mechanisms at both the international and national level. Unfortunately, the agreement has motivated the tobacco industry to seek marketing tactics that target middle- and low-income countries and minimize the impact of control activities initiated by FCTC signing countries. In this context, we will present and discuss the current situation in Mexico.

In May 2004 the Mexican government announced an agreement with the tobacco industry operating in Mexico. The tobacco industry agreed to contribute to a new health reform program one peso (0.092 US$) per pack of cigarettes sold. This program would provide coverage for the uninsured for catastrophic expenses associated with certain diseases. The funds would be paid provided that tobacco sales remained stable, the current distribution of market shares was not modified, and federal or state taxes were not increased.

Critics claim that the agreement violates specific articles of FCTC and binds the government's new health program to the tobacco industry's sales profits. Mexican government officials have argued that taxes cannot be earmarked and this agreement guarantees that tobacco related money is recovered to support health care while increasing the price of tobacco products.

In this session we will analyze the arguments and positions of different stakeholders and we will provide a theoretical framework to consider the benefits and risks associated with this agreement in order to inform other countries that may decide to use the Mexican strategy.