PMI reduced-risk claims and upselling of IQOS via Reviti life insurance

Reviti Limited, a wholly owned subsidiary of Philip Morris International (PMI), incorporated 5 July 2018, sells life insurance in the UK, with plans to expand into other markets.1 Incentivising smokers to switch to PMI’s heated tobacco product IQOS, Reviti generated media attention.1 2 The advertised discounts on Reviti’s premiums average 50% for smokers who quit tobacco and nicotine altogether for over a year, 25% for smokers who switch to IQOS for >3 months, and 2.5% for those who use e-cigarettes. The relative discounts on premiums imply that switching to IQOS is 10 times healthier than using e-cigarettes. Further, Reviti offers the e-cigarette discount only at policy inception, with no switching incentive; and notably omits a discount for nicotine replacement therapies. Reviti’s website claims IQOS is the only available ‘science-backed smoke-free alternative’ (figure 1). Unacknowledged is that the evidence for IQOS derives exclusively…

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