RESET Alcohol Initiative
RESET Alcohol is a unique global initiative that aims to increase alcohol taxation to levels that will raise prices and reduce consumption, which is one of the most effective interventions to reduce alcohol harms.
Raising the Price to Reduce the Harm
The evidence is clear: when alcohol costs more, people consume less, and harms decrease.
Alcohol is aggressively marketed, widely available, and in most countries, remarkably cheap. Yet, alcohol-related diseases, injuries, disability, violence and lost productivity impose substantial health, social and economic costs, especially in communities with the fewest resources to respond because of differences in access to healthcare, nutritional deficiencies and comorbidities.
Tax increases are among the most effective tools to reduce alcohol consumption. They reduce harm across populations while generating revenue that can be reinvested into public health. As a result, the World Health Organization identifies alcohol taxation as the single highest-impact recommendation for reducing alcohol harms.
Led by Vital Strategies and funded by Coefficient Giving, RESET Alcohol is a partnership of national governments, local civil society and research partners, and the following global organizations: Economics for Health at Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, Movendi International, Global Alcohol Policy Alliance and the World Health Organization.
Resetting the Alcohol Policy Environment
RESET Alcohol brings together civil society, researchers and global technical experts to assist national governments in building the evidence base, political will and public support needed to implement stronger alcohol taxes. The goal is not just a one-time tax increase, but a durable shift in how countries price alcohol to reflect its true cost to society.
News and Resources
Alcohol Policy Resources
Vital Strategies and partners have created alcohol policy resources, including communication campaign overviews, case studies, technical guidelines on alcohol taxation and other publications.
Brazil Alcohol Tax Simulator
RESET partners Universidade Católica de Brasília and Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health developed the Alcohol Tax Simulator to support Brazilian civil society and government partners to develop recommendations for alcohol tax rates to reduce alcohol consumption, meet health targets and generate revenue.
