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American Lung Association Releases New Report

American Lung Associate

Smoking-related diseases cost Medicaid programs $833 million in taxpayer dollars per state in 2013. Tobacco use is the leading cause of preventable death in the US and it costs the country up to $333 billion annually.  But one organization is trying to curb the amount of smokers in the country by focusing on the state level.  

The American Lung Associate released a new report that looks at the influence of the Affordable Care Act on smoking prevention.  The report takes a close look at each state and the way its health care system will help smokers quit. 

Alaska director for the American Lung Association Marge Stoneking says ACA has affected the smoking population positively.

“I think the big take away for the 2014 report is that the Affordable Care Act has done great things for Americans and Alaskan sin trying to quit smoking. Because tobacco cessation treatment is required as part of Medicare, Medicaid and private insurance where it was not previously.”

Stoneking says in Alaska 7,000 residents were uninsured before ACA that now have health care.  She says that is why the state should expand Medicaid, to provide health care to some of the remaining uninsured. 

According to the report, there are seven preventive service requirements that each state should cover that would create comprehensive coverage for tobacco cessation; screening for tobacco use, phone counseling, FDA-approved tobacco cessation medications, at least two quit attempts per year, four sessions of counseling, no prior authorization for treatment and no cost-sharing.  Alaska only covers a limited number of tobacco cessation medications and requires copayments. 

However, Stoneking says Alaskans do have quit smoking programs at their disposal.

“The Alaska Tobacco Quit Line and that is phone counseling as well as nicotine replacement therapy products for free and you can call repeatedly and you can make multiple quit attempts. The American Lung Association offers a program called Freedom from Smoking. You can do a free version or a stepped up version.”

She says with an expansion of Medicaid, more Alaskans would be able to get coverage for programs that aren’t free and the fewer smokers, the more money the state saves in the long run.