Arbeitspapier
Paternalistic Taxation of Unhealthy Food and the Intensive versus Extensive Margin of Obesity
This paper shows that if an individual’s health costs are U-shaped in weight with a minimum at some healthy weight level and if the individual has both self control problems and rational motives for over- or underweight, the optimal paternalistic tax on unhealthy food mitigates the individual’s weight problem (intensive margin), but does not induce the individual to choose healthy weight (extensive margin). Implementing healthy weight requires a further distortion (e.g. subsidy on other goods), which may render the tax on unhealthy food inferior to the option of not taxing the individual at all. In addition, with heterogeneous individuals the optimal uniform paternalistic tax may have the negative side effect of rendering otherwise healthy individuals underweight.
- Language
-
Englisch
- Bibliographic citation
-
Series: CESifo Working Paper ; No. 6911
- Classification
-
Wirtschaft
Consumer Economics: Theory
Taxation and Subsidies: Efficiency; Optimal Taxation
Health: Government Policy; Regulation; Public Health
- Subject
-
sin tax
paternalism
obesity
extensive versus intensive margin
- Event
-
Geistige Schöpfung
- (who)
-
Kalamov, Zarko
Runkel, Marco
- Event
-
Veröffentlichung
- (who)
-
Center for Economic Studies and ifo Institute (CESifo)
- (where)
-
Munich
- (when)
-
2018
- Handle
- Last update
-
10.03.2025, 11:42 AM CET
Data provider
This object is provided by:
ZBW - Deutsche Zentralbibliothek für Wirtschaftswissenschaften - Leibniz-Informationszentrum Wirtschaft. If you have any questions about the object, please contact the data provider.
ZBW - Deutsche Zentralbibliothek für Wirtschaftswissenschaften - Leibniz-Informationszentrum Wirtschaft. If you have any questions about the object, please contact the data provider.
Object type
- Arbeitspapier
Associated
- Kalamov, Zarko
- Runkel, Marco
- Center for Economic Studies and ifo Institute (CESifo)
Time of origin
- 2018
Other Objects (12)
Taxation of unhealthy food consumption and the intensive versus extensive margin of obesity
Taxation of unhealthy food consumption and the intensive versus extensive margin of obesity
The Intensive and Extensive Margin of European Labour Supply
The Intensive and Extensive Margin of European Labour Supply
Game of Prejudice – Experiments at the Extensive and Intensive Margin
Game of Prejudice: Experiments at the Extensive and Intensive Margin
Similarity of income distributions and the extensive and intensive margin of bilateral trade flows
Cycling on the extensive and intensive margin: The role of paths and prices
Cycling on the Extensive and Intensive Margin – The Role of Paths and Prices
Cycling on the extensive and intensive margin: The role of paths and prices
A causal interpretation of extensive and intensive margin effects in generalized tobit models
Persistent zeros : The extensive margin of trade
Taxation of unhealthy food consumption and the intensive versus extensive margin of obesity
Taxation of unhealthy food consumption and the intensive versus extensive margin of obesity
The Intensive and Extensive Margin of European Labour Supply
The Intensive and Extensive Margin of European Labour Supply
Game of Prejudice – Experiments at the Extensive and Intensive Margin
Game of Prejudice: Experiments at the Extensive and Intensive Margin
Similarity of income distributions and the extensive and intensive margin of bilateral trade flows
Cycling on the extensive and intensive margin: The role of paths and prices
Cycling on the Extensive and Intensive Margin – The Role of Paths and Prices
Cycling on the extensive and intensive margin: The role of paths and prices
A causal interpretation of extensive and intensive margin effects in generalized tobit models
Persistent zeros : The extensive margin of trade
Taxation of unhealthy food consumption and the intensive versus extensive margin of obesity
Taxation of unhealthy food consumption and the intensive versus extensive margin of obesity
The Intensive and Extensive Margin of European Labour Supply
The Intensive and Extensive Margin of European Labour Supply
Game of Prejudice – Experiments at the Extensive and Intensive Margin
Game of Prejudice: Experiments at the Extensive and Intensive Margin
Similarity of income distributions and the extensive and intensive margin of bilateral trade flows
Cycling on the extensive and intensive margin: The role of paths and prices
Cycling on the Extensive and Intensive Margin – The Role of Paths and Prices
Cycling on the extensive and intensive margin: The role of paths and prices
A causal interpretation of extensive and intensive margin effects in generalized tobit models