Ironically, the Japanese do not discourage smoking. They realize the savings in health care costs from smokers dieing prematurely and factor that into their economy. They must laugh at how Americans discourage it at their own peril in long term health care costs.
Used to be that way, my friend. But not anymore. Smoking is being relentlessly snuffed out in Japan as well.
20 years ago when I came to work here, smoking was allowed in every office space and people came around in the morning to empty the ashtrays on everyone’s desks.
Now, virtually all offices are non-smoking and the most you can hope for is a smoking room on your floor — if your lucky.
You can’t even pop outside the building for a smoke in most districts of Tokyo now. Walking with a cigarette in your hand is a 2,000 yen fine in most central Tokyo areas. Taxis are now non-smoking.
Smoking cars are being eliminated from trains. Smoking areas in restaurants are getting smaller and smaller, and on the station platforms, and only on a few lines, there are small three meter square smoking areas always located wayyyyyyyyyyy down at the very end of the platform.
I’ve pretty much switched to Swedish snus during the day. I smoke at home in the evenings and on weekends.
When everything is added up does the typical smoker cost a nation's health care system less that a non-smoker? Yes,smokers tend to die young but many of them (most,in fact) use up a ton of health care $$$ in the last 5...10...20 years of their lives.My Dad and my cousin are two examples.My Dad stopped smoking in his 70's after substantial,but not overwhelming,damage had been done to his lungs.He spent **lots** of time in the hospital and in doctors' offices....tests,X-rays,pills,etc,etc...in the last 10 years of his life.Except for his lungs he was in very good shape for a guy his age.
My cousin was even worse.She was a respiratory cripple for the last 10 years of her life.In the hospital more than she was out.She died young (65) but she did *not* die cheap.