June 27, 2011 - On Friday June 24, 2011, the Obama Administration took critical steps to help smokers quit by announcing expanded Medicaid coverage of tobacco cessation services. The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) will allow states to receive federal funding to offer telephone quitline services for Medicaid beneficiaries. They will also provide direction to states for implementing the requirement of the Health Care Law that Medicaid cover comprehensive tobacco cessation treatment for pregnant women, including both counseling and pharmacotherapy. Given the low-income population that Medicaid serves, these historic new coverage options will likely affect access and utilization of cessation services, significantly improving the health of Medicaid enrollees and protecting their families from secondhand smoke.

Some states have already expanded Medicaid coverage of tobacco cessation services, generating positive health and economic outcomes. After Massachusetts provided Medicaid coverage of smoking cessation services in 2006, the smoking rate among beneficiaries declined by 26% in the first 2.5 years. As a result, there were substantial decreases in hospitalizations due to heart attack and cardiovascular disease, saving the state an estimated $15.4 million in health care costs.  Based on this evidence, it is expected that the newly expanded Medicaid coverage will successfully prevent tobacco related death and disease, save taxpayer dollars, and improve well being of many Americans.

For more information, please visit http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/obama-administration-announces-expanded-medicaid-coverage-to-help-smokers-quit-124505003.html