Department of Economics

Although the negative health consequences of tobacco use are well-informed, smokers usuallydo not have an incentive to quit smoking immediately as the smoking interventions are notcompulsory and the illness caused by smoking is distant in time. Smoking behavior is denselystudied and proved to be associated with a wide range of genetic, social, and psychologicalfactors. This study is to learn how does COVID-19 spread influence the smoking prevalence inthe United State. The results show that smoking behavior is not geographically affected by thestrictness of lockdown orders and the severity of coronavirus spread. However, the cigaretteconsumption is associated with COVID-19 with a negative significance if people encounterdepression during COVID-19. The outcome provides some important information for thecessation-related organizations: it is necessary to take care of smokers’ emotion status in theprocess of quitting during COVID-19.