Health News
- Pharmacy Chain With 65 Ky. Stores Will Stop Selling Tobacco
CVS Caremark pharmacies will stop selling cigarettes and other tobacco products in all of its 7,600 U.S. stores by Oct. 1. Kentucky has 65 CVS Caremark stores. This is the first national pharmacy chain to make this decision. "CVS Caremark sets a powerful...
- Tobacco Use Higher In Rural Areas; Several Factors Include Tobacco Companies' Targeting Of Rural Youth, Lung Assn. Says
Tobacco use is higher among rural communities than in suburban and urban areas, and smokeless tobacco use is twice as common. According to the American Lung Association, rural youth are more likely to use tobacco and to start earlier than urban youth,...
- Spend $1 On Smoking Cessation, Save $3 In Health Costs, Massachusetts Study Finds
Every $1 spent on smoking cessation in Massachusetts, saved $3 in health costs, a study of low-income Bay State residents found. That could bode well for the impact of a new smoking-cessation benefit in Kentucky's Medicaid program. Massachusetts...
- State's Tobacco Quit Line Is Now Available To Users Aged 15-17
The state Tobacco Quit Line will now offer counseling services to Kentuckians aged 15 to 17 to help them give up cigarettes or other tobacco products. The line had been available only to people 18 and older. Public Health Commissioner William Hacker,...
- Kentucky Gets 'f' For Tobacco Control, But Expansion Of Cessation Programs In Medicaid Should Raise Grade
As a proposed statewide smoking ban continues to be debated, Kentucky and Indiana have received dismal grades from the American Lung Association's recently released State of Tobacco Control 2009 report. But it's 2011, and parts of the report...
Health News
American Lung Association calls state's tobacco-cessation benefit inadequate now that Medicaid is under managed care
Kentucky added a robust tobacco cessation benefit to its Medicaid program, only to lose much of it in 2011 by putting the program under managed care by insurance companies, the American Lung Association notes in its annual report. Not only do their plans offer fewer treatments, explained the report, but information was confusing to patients and healthcare providers alike. The report also notes that the state -- which is not alone in this -- offers its smokers who desire to quit inadequate access to medications and counseling.
Robert Preidt of HealthDay reports that the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services late last month published a proposed rule that requires tobacco cessation as an essential health benefit under the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act. The lung association report how states could put that rule to maximum use. "Giving all smokers access to a comprehensive cessation benefits is not only the right thing to do, it's the smart thing to do," Billings said. "The bottom line is that quitting smoking saves lives and saves money." One recent study, reports Preidt, showed that providing smokers with help to quit has a three-to-one return on investment, meaning $3 is saved for every for $1 spent. (Read more)
To see more about how Kentucky's tobacco cessation coverage rates, according to the American Lung Association, go here.
Robert Preidt of HealthDay reports that the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services late last month published a proposed rule that requires tobacco cessation as an essential health benefit under the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act. The lung association report how states could put that rule to maximum use. "Giving all smokers access to a comprehensive cessation benefits is not only the right thing to do, it's the smart thing to do," Billings said. "The bottom line is that quitting smoking saves lives and saves money." One recent study, reports Preidt, showed that providing smokers with help to quit has a three-to-one return on investment, meaning $3 is saved for every for $1 spent. (Read more)
To see more about how Kentucky's tobacco cessation coverage rates, according to the American Lung Association, go here.
- Pharmacy Chain With 65 Ky. Stores Will Stop Selling Tobacco
CVS Caremark pharmacies will stop selling cigarettes and other tobacco products in all of its 7,600 U.S. stores by Oct. 1. Kentucky has 65 CVS Caremark stores. This is the first national pharmacy chain to make this decision. "CVS Caremark sets a powerful...
- Tobacco Use Higher In Rural Areas; Several Factors Include Tobacco Companies' Targeting Of Rural Youth, Lung Assn. Says
Tobacco use is higher among rural communities than in suburban and urban areas, and smokeless tobacco use is twice as common. According to the American Lung Association, rural youth are more likely to use tobacco and to start earlier than urban youth,...
- Spend $1 On Smoking Cessation, Save $3 In Health Costs, Massachusetts Study Finds
Every $1 spent on smoking cessation in Massachusetts, saved $3 in health costs, a study of low-income Bay State residents found. That could bode well for the impact of a new smoking-cessation benefit in Kentucky's Medicaid program. Massachusetts...
- State's Tobacco Quit Line Is Now Available To Users Aged 15-17
The state Tobacco Quit Line will now offer counseling services to Kentuckians aged 15 to 17 to help them give up cigarettes or other tobacco products. The line had been available only to people 18 and older. Public Health Commissioner William Hacker,...
- Kentucky Gets 'f' For Tobacco Control, But Expansion Of Cessation Programs In Medicaid Should Raise Grade
As a proposed statewide smoking ban continues to be debated, Kentucky and Indiana have received dismal grades from the American Lung Association's recently released State of Tobacco Control 2009 report. But it's 2011, and parts of the report...