Russia has begun a fresh round in its age-old battle against alcoholism, considering a law that would raise taxes on beer by 300% and ban its sale in the country's ubiquitious kiosks.
The industry and trade ministry has drafted the law, following last month's order by President Dmitry Medvedev for a range of measures to battle what he termed a "national disaster". The order followed a report by the Public Chamber, Russia's chief oversight body, that found alcohol contributed to some 500,000 deaths each year – a figure 16 times higher than that cited by federal health officials.
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