The Association Between Alcoholic Liver Disease and Alcohol Tax

The incidence of alcoholic liver disease (ALD) has increased, causing it to become a primary indication for liver transplantation in the United States. We hypothesized an association between alcohol taxation and prevalence of ALD.

We conducted a retrospective study of united network for organ sharing (UNOS) waitlist additions for liver transplantation between January 2007 and December 2016. We also analyzed the average excise tax (2007-2016) for beer, wine, and spirits in listing states of liver transplant waitlist additions (LTWA).

There were 104 805 adult UNOS LTWA with assigned diagnoses, an annual increase from 22% to 28%. There were 24 316 LTWA with ALD diagnosis. The mean value for beer tax was significantly lower for ALD patients than for non-ALD patients across all age groups (P < .001). The analysis demonstrated significantly more ALD in waitlisted patients 35-54 years of age (30%), compared with 18-34 years (10%) and ≥55 years (20%), P < .001. The data confirmed significantly more ALD Medicaid patients in the 35-54 year age group (28%) compared with other age groups, P < .001.

Our research demonstrated an association between lower beer tax and higher ALD prevalence across all age groups. We found a larger percentage of middle-aged (35-54 years) Medicaid patients listed with ALD. These findings raise the need for further investigation of a potential public health concern for an association between ALD and beer tax, especially for middle-aged patients of lower socioeconomic status.