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Making the Case for Medicaid Funding of Smoking Cessation Treatment Programs: An Application to State-Level Health Care Savings
- Journal of Health Care for the Poor and Underserved
- Johns Hopkins University Press
- Volume 25, Number 4, November 2014
- pp. 1922-1940
- 10.1353/hpu.2014.0171
- Article
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Background. In spite of cost-saving tobacco-dependence treatments, many state Medicaid programs offer only limited coverage for these treatments. This report builds a case for state-level financial benefits from funding smoking cessation treatment for Medicaid-eligible populations. Methods. Applying published cost estimates to state-specific data, we assessed potential health care savings from tobacco-dependence treatments for pregnant women, mothers exposing young children to secondhand smoke, and other adult Medicaid beneficiaries. Results. Across all three populations there was evidence for short-term positive returns on investment. Including counseling and nicotine replacement therapy, estimated net savings were $157,000 annually for pregnant women and their newborns, $33,000 annually within four years for children exposed to smoke at home, and $5 million annually within two years for the general adult Medicaid population in Alabama. Conclusions. Findings suggest that making tobacco-dependence treatment freely available to low-income smokers can produce net savings for state governments within a short period of time.