by Jimmy Carter

About the author: Jimmy Carter was president of the United States from 1976 to 1980. Prior to his term in the White House, he served as governor of Georgia. He is currently involved in Habitat for Humanity, an organization that helps low-income people build their own homes.

As our president searches for ways to improve health care and reduce budget deficits, he should seriously consider a major increase in federal tobacco taxes. He could save hundreds of thousands of lives and simultaneously raise tens of billions of dollars for health care reform or deficit reduction.

Suffering and Loss

Iknow the incalculable toll of suffering and human loss caused by tobacco use. My father, my mother, both sisters, and my brother died of cancer. Every one of them smoked cigarettes. Each year nearly one-half million Americans die...