Coronary heart disease and stroke—the primary types of cardiovascular disease caused by smoking—are the first and third leading causes of death in the United States. More than 61 million Americans suffer from some form of cardiovascular disease, including high blood pressure, coronary heart disease, stroke, congestive heart failure, and other conditions. More than 2,600 Americans […]

Cancer is the second leading cause of death and was among the first diseases causally linked to smoking. (p. 39)
Lung cancer is the leading cause of cancer death, and cigarette smoking causes most cases. (p. 61)
Compared to nonsmokers, men who smoke are about 23 times more likely to develop lung cancer and women who smoke […]

Smoking remains the leading cause of preventable death and has negative health impacts on people at all stages of life. It harms unborn babies, infants, children, adolescents, adults, and seniors.

Research has shown that women’s smoking during pregnancy increases the risk of pregnancy complications, premature delivery, low-birth-weight infants, stillbirth, and sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS).
The […]

How Much Do Cessation Benefits Cost? Are They Cost-Effective?

Tobacco cessation is more cost-effective than other common and covered disease prevention interventions, such as the treatment of hypertension and high blood cholesterol.
Cost analyses have shown tobacco cessation benefits to be either cost-saving or cost-neutral. Overall, cost/expenditure to employers equalizes at 3 years; benefits exceed costs […]

HowShould Benefits Be Designed?
Benefits for proven tobacco-use cessation treatments have been shown to increase treatment use and the number of successful quitters; therefore, both the Public Health Service-sponsored Clinical Practice Guideline, Treating Tobacco Use and Dependence, and the Community Preventive Services Task Force recommend that all insurers provide tobacco cessation benefits that do the […]

Scientifically proven treatments can double a person’s chances of quitting smoking.
Smoking cessation treatments have been found to be safe and effective.        These include counseling and medications, or a combination of both.

Face-to-face counseling and interactive telephone counseling are more effective than services that only provide educational or self-help materials.
The effectiveness of counseling services increases as […]

Paying  for tobacco use cessation treatments is the single most cost-effective  health insurance benefit for adults that can be provided to employees.

Smoking is costly to employers both in terms of smoking-related medical expenses and lost productivity.

Ten percent of smokers alive today are living with a smoking-related illness.
Men who smoke incur $15,800 (in 2002 dollars) […]

Studies have shown that these five steps will help you quit and quit for good. You have the best chances of quitting if you use them together.

Get Ready
Get Support
Learn new skills and behaviors
Get medication and use it correctly.
Be prepared for relapse or difficult situations.

1. Get Ready

Set a quit date.
Change your environment.

Get rid of […]

You Can Quit Smoking

If you have tried to quit smoking, you know how hard it can be.
Nicotine is a very addictive drug, and usually people make two or three tries, or more, before they successfully quit.
Each time you try to quit, you can learn what works for you and what situations are problematic.
Using […]

Lung Cancer, Smoking, and Secondhand Smoke

Cigarette smoking causes lung cancer. In fact, smoking tobacco is the major risk factor for lung cancer. In the United States, about 90 percent of lung cancer deaths in men and almost 80 percent of lung cancer deaths in women are due to smoking. People who smoke […]