National Priority #5

Expand access to proven, effective treatments for tobacco addiction

Currently, cessation services are not adequately covered in either public or private health plans. Few Medicaid programs provide adequate coverage, and Medicare coverage is limited. Only 1 in 50 employers in the U.S. offer coverage for all evidence-based treatments, and one out of every five employers does not cover any of the effective treatments. The PHS Clinical Practice Guideline recommends that insurers and purchasers should ensure that all insurance plans include effective, evidence-based counseling and medication as covered benefits.

Featured Partner Activity

This priority is one of the current focus areas of NTCC partner Partnership for Prevention. Currently there is not adequate coverage in either public or private health plans; Medicare coverage is limited and few Medicaid programs cover comprehensive services. Only 1 in 50 US employers offer coverage of all evidence-based treatments. One of the ways Partnership is addressing this is through the National Working Group for ACTTION (Access to Cessation Treatment of Tobacco In Our Nation). In November, a group of public and private health, business and political leaders came together to develop and issue a multi-sector Call for ACTTION to dramatically increase access to the comprehensive treatments tobacco users need to help them quit. The Working Group wanted to:

The goal of ACTTION is to: Expand access to comprehensive tobacco cessation treatment to 50% of smokers by 2015, and 100% by 2020. Based on recent reports issued by the CDC, the Institute of Medicine, and the U.S. Public Health Service, the Call for ACTTION plan cites three critical areas where the country should take action to improve access to comprehensive treatment:

The Call for ACTTION provides overall recommendations for action all stakeholders, including:

The Call for ACTTION also provides specific recommendations for each essential sector (employers/employer organizations, insurers, tobacco control/public health advocates, healthcare systems, and policymakers). For more information, see http://www.acttiontoquit.org/.

Other Partner Activities

NTCC partners are currently conducting many activities related to this priority. For a list of these NTCC partner activities, click here.

 

American Cancer Society Legacy Centers for Disease Control and Prevention National Cancer Institute National Institute on Drug Abuse Robert Wood Johnson Foundation
Consumer Demand YTCC The National Partnership for Smoke Free Families