The Israel Association of Public Health Physicians intends to send a letter to MK Benjamin Netanyahu (Likud), requesting that he not cancel the tax on sweet drinks after he forms the next government, Behadrey Haredim reported.
The tax on sweetened drinks was first announced in July 2021, and went into effect in January of this year.
"Canceling the tax on sweet drinks will cost in human lives. Political and commercial considerations must not completely cancel out health considerations," the Association's chairman, Professor Hagai Levine, said. "The law has saved human lives."
According to Kan 11, the doctors turned to the haredi parties, as well as to Netanyahu, requesting that the tax not be canceled.
The organization also told MKs from Shas, United Torah Judaism, and the Likud that canceling the tax will cause severe illness such as heart disease, obesity, and stroke.