Where there's smoking, there's fire

"The NBER Bulletin on Aging and Health provides summaries of publications like this. You can sign up to receive the NBER Bulletin on Aging and Health by email. Fires and burns are among the top ten leading causes of unintentional death in the United States, with thousands of deaths occurring annually. The majority of these deaths and injuries occur in residential fires, and cigarettes have been identified as one of the leading causes of these fire-related deaths. In this paper, I explore the relationship between cigarette smoking and fires caused by cigarettes in the United States. As fewer people smoke, there is less opportunity for fires to start as a result of cigarettes. However, the magnitude of any reduction is in question as it is not obvious that the people who quit smoking are the ones who start fires. I also examine the contribution of tobacco-related public policies in influencing the incidence of cigarette-related fires. I use a state-level panel of reported fires over time to estimate both the structural and reduced form equations for cigarette fires. Results indicate that reductions in smoking and increases in cigarette prices are associated with fewer fires. However, laws regulating indoor smoking are associated with increases in some types of fires. Specifically, workplace restrictions and bans are associated with increases in fires in all locations and in residential units. Restaurant and bar bans are associated with increases in fires in restaurants and all eating/drinking establishments"--National Bureau of Economic Research web site.