Smoking cessation coverage

Tobacco use is the #1 cause of preventable death in the United States.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, smoking accounts for nearly 1 of every 5 deaths each year. Compared with people who do not smoke, people who smoke increase their risk of:

• coronary heart disease by 2 to 4 times
• stroke by 2 to 4 times
• developing lung cancer by 13 times (women) to 23 times (men)
• dying from chronic obstructive lung diseases by 12 to 13 times

70% of people who smoke say that they want to quit.

Providing cessation coverage earns a return on investment.

Access to resources is important in achieving successful quit rates. In 2006, MassHealth, a Massachusetts health care program, began offering its members access to all FDA-approved smoking cessation medications and behavioral counseling. Among participants who used these resources, they found:  

• 27% decrease in smoking rates
• 38% fewer hospitalizations for heart attacks
• 17% fewer visits to the emergency room for asthma symptoms
  

Illinois’ smoking-related health care costs total an estimated $4.1 billion, 
with an additional $4.35 billion in lost productivity.

With lower smoking rates, Illinois will have a reduction in heart attacks, fewer emergency room visits for asthma attacks, fewer chemotherapy treatments for lung cancer and fewer absences due to illness.

Programs that reduce patient out-of-pocket costs for effective cessation 
therapies save $364 to $1,449 per patient.

Tobacco use treatment is ranked as one of the most cost-effective health services with the largest health gains, ranking close to children’s immunizations. A smoking cessation program for women who are pregnant can save as much as $6 for each $1 spent.

The most effective treatment of tobacco dependence requires:

• behavior modification or counseling
• medications (over-the-counter or prescription)
  

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, comprehensive cessation coverage costs between 10 cents and 40 cents per insurance plan member per month. Resultant reductions in health care costs yield a positive return on investment within three years.

Download and print this smoking cessation coverage fact sheet.

Recent news coverage

Letter to the Editor from Robert Cohen, MD.

Q&A on the smoking cessation bill.

For more information, contact Matt Maloney:
Email Matt
(312) 628-0233