WHO: Alcohol Prices Linked to Misuse in Czech Republic September 14, 2004
News Summary
A World Health Organization (WHO) report finds that poor control over the sale of alcohol, insufficient law enforcement, and a lack of restrictions on alcohol advertising and sponsorship at youth and sports events have led to a growing alcohol problem among children in the Czech Republic, the Prague Post reported Sept. 9.Dr. Marian Koranda and his colleagues have been treating patients as young as age 10 with alcohol problems. Recently, a new children's detox center opened in central Prague to address the number of juveniles addicted to alcohol.
"One key reason there are so many young people with alcohol-related problems and dependency is that alcohol is so cheap, and that makes it too easily accessible," Koranda said.
Beer in Prague can be purchased for as little as 19 cents per 17-ounce bottle. Wine and hard liquors are just as inexpensive. According to the WHO report, beer is cheaper to purchase in the Czech Republic than soft drinks.
"It's not difficult for children to spend their pocket money on a few beers in a bar; they can easily get drunk cheaply and owners are more interested in the profit than the fact that they shouldn't be serving them," said Koranda.
He added, "Alcohol manufacturers and the government are too busy thinking about the short-term profit to care about the long-term damage."
Dr. Karel Nespor, national coordinator of WHO's European Action Plan on Alcohol and head of the addiction-treatment center at Prague's Bohunice hospital, said the government should increase alcohol taxes to address the problem.
"The Czech Republic has one of the cheapest prices for alcohol in the world in relation to the cost of nonalcoholic drinks and GDP," Nespor said. "One of the main things needed to prevent alcohol-related problems is raising the price of alcohol by raising taxes."
Finance Ministry spokesman Marek Zeman said there are no plans to raise alcohol taxes in the Czech Republic. "We don't believe that raising the tax on alcohol would have any effect on reducing alcohol-related problems," he said. "With the increase in VAT, the price on alcohol has been raised enough."
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