Posted on 12/25/2004 10:37:36 AM PST by SheLion
WASHINGTON, Dec. 23 /PRNewswire/ -- HHS Secretary Tommy G. Thompson today announced that the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) intends to provide new coverage allowing certain Medicare beneficiaries who smoke to receive counseling services that will help them quit the habit.
"We're building on our efforts to help America's seniors help themselves to quit smoking and live longer," Secretary Thompson said. "This new benefit, focused on treating seniors' smoking related diseases, will go a long way toward reducing their risk of dying prematurely. The combination of lives lost, unnecessarily, and the cost of treating smoking-related diseases makes our investment in smoking cessation benefits all that more important. It's never too late to benefit from quitting smoking."
An estimated 9.3 percent of those age 65 and older smoke cigarettes. About 440,000 people die annually from smoking related disease, with 300,000 of those deaths in those 65 and older.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) estimated in 2002 that 57 percent of smokers age 65 and over reported a desire to quit. Currently, about 10 percent of elderly smokers quit each year, with 1 percent relapsing.
"The evidence available fully supports the hope that seniors at risk of the diseases caused by smoking can quit, given the right assistance," CMS Administrator Mark McClellan, M.D., Ph.D. said. "As we add the 'Welcome to Medicare' exam and other preventive benefits and drug coverage, this is another step in using the medical evidence to turn Medicare into a prevention- oriented program."
The proposal to cover smoking cessation counseling comes in response to a June 2004 request from the Partnership for Prevention (PFP). The PFP requested CMS open a national coverage decision to consider coverage of tobacco cessation counseling as detailed in the HHS Public Health Service (PHS) 2000 Clinical Practice Guideline, Treating Tobacco Use and Dependence.
The guideline has been endorsed by many health care and professional organizations. Based on the evidence reflected in the guideline, CMS proposes to extend smoking cessation coverage to beneficiaries who smoke and have been diagnosed with a smoking related disease or are taking certain drugs whose metabolism is affected by tobacco use. This announcement builds on a series of HHS initiatives designed to help Americans quit smoking, including the opening of a new national quitline (1-800-QUITNOW) and designating all HHS campuses tobacco-free.
While many may think those who quit smoking at age 65 or older fail to reap the health benefits of abstinence from tobacco, the U.S. Surgeon General has reported that the benefits of cessation do extend to quitting at older ages. Smoking cessation in older adults leads to significant risk reduction and other health benefits, even in those who have smoked for years.
The coverage decision involves Medicare beneficiaries who have an illness caused or complicated by smoking, including heart disease, cerebrovascular disease, lung disease, weak bones, blood clots, and cataracts -- the diseases that account for the bulk of Medicare spending today. It also applies to beneficiaries who take any of the many medications whose effectiveness is complicated by smoking -- including insulins and medicines for high blood pressure, seizures, blood clots and depression.
"The best way to prevent the serious health problems caused by tobacco is never to start using it. Millions of our beneficiaries have smoked for many years, and are now experiencing the heart problems, lung problems, and many other often-fatal diseases that smoking can cause. It's really hard to quit, but we are going to do everything we can to help," said Dr. McClellan. "I especially want to urge smokers on Medicare who are just starting to experience heart problems or lung problems or high blood pressure to take advantage of this new help -- and more is coming."
Medicare's upcoming prescription drug benefit will cover smoking cessation treatments that are prescribed by a physician.
CMS Chief Medical Officer Sean Tunis, M.D., said, "Federal policy has acknowledged tobacco as the number one cause of preventable death for decades now, and CMS has taken the lead in implementing coverage policy for our seniors to deal directly with this critical health problem."
In 1993, smoking cost the Medicare program about $14.2 billion, or approximately 10 percent of Medicare's total budget. On average, nonsmokers survived 1.6 - 3.9 years longer than those who have never smoked.
The proposed new coverage policy is available for review at the CMS coverage Web site (http://www.cms.hhs.gov/coverage). The posting of this proposed coverage policy marks the beginning of a 30-day public comment period. After close of the comment period, CMS will have 60 days to review the comments and issue a final policy.
Note: All HHS press releases, fact sheets and other press materials are available at http://www.hhs.gov/news.
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Source: Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services
"Warp 10 Smug Factor" -- ROFL! And oooooooh so true.
F'em. I'm only smoking five or so a day, but because of that bleeping smug factor, I will NOT stop, unless I forget, and stop by accident.
Actually I am on your side when it comes to these issues.
I resent the fact that smokers are treated like criminals and banned by law from restaurants, bars etc.
I think those decisions should be left up to the owners of businesses.
I also think it is disgusting that the Govt want to balance the budget on the backs of smokers by taxing cigarettes $5 a pack. That makes me angry.
My only argument with you was over the fact that cigarettes are a health risk and not to belittle those who try to help others quit. The Title of of the thread?
My "kind"? "arze"?
We can add these nice comments to "YOU FOOL" and "You are such a putz."
....and you telling other posters;
"It's a good thing I don't live close to this idiot. I would smack him a good one!"
Do you really think I deserve to have my feelings hurt like this?
BS. Let's look at some of your posts to SheLion, shall we?
LOL. You sound like a fun person. If this is how you handle those who disagree with you on a message board I sure wouldn't want to be around you when you run out of cigarettes :)
151 posted on 12/26/2004 9:00:54 PM PST by Jorge
Now, can we get back to your flimsy claim "herion" and crack addiction? And how much worse you claim that cigarette smoking is, as far as quitting goes?
I am really sorry to hear that. I can't imagine how hard it must be to lose somebody you've loved and been with for 34 years.
Why would I need to lie about something like this?
I honestly found quiting cigarettes harder than getting off heroin or crack/cocaine.
And and I've heard other people, both in my Rehab support group and Teen Challenge leaders say the same thing about addicts they ministered to.
That they had a much harder time quiting cigarettes than drugs.
I tried to quit several times over a 15 year period before I finally succeeded.
You're right about that.
I've never seen ANYTHING destroy people's lives more dramatically or rapidly than crack.
I thank God that I escaped this addiction with my life. Several of my friends were not so fortunate.
Thanks for the info and for caring. However, it's none of your business what I do with my life. I have survived two major cancer's in my life (neither one was caused by smoking, I might add). I will have to die from something. I doubt if I will get out of this life alive, so I may as well enjoy it!
It's been my experience that if you post your opinions or situations on FR, people will comment. You know that.
Comment is one thing, but trying to change my way of living is another. I don't take lightly to that.
Everyone has their own opinions but they don't have to try to force them on me. I have lived long enough to be pretty set in my ways.
Fondly.
I don't think it will happen in our lifetimes.
But let's be clear. You would deny Medicare offering stop smoking counseling to people who want it, not because you see it as another entitlement program, not because it might make people live longer and cost medicare more, but because you are afraid eventually they will take away or reduce your benefits.
Let's be very clear:
I would deny using taxpayer dollars to fund social engineering feelgood programs to perpetuate the myth that cigarette smoking is a disease that needs a counselling "cure."
Well in this case the government collected premiums from those people in exchange for a promise of medical insurance in old age. That insurance may not have been priced right. And the government might have spent the premiums instead of investing them in order to provide the promised care when due. But the government is obligated now to provide appropriate insurance care.
And it seems to me that smoking cessation programs are an appropriate "preventive wellness" program that a smart insurance company might very well undertake to cut their costs.
So, why don't more insurers provide those services? Very few offer even partial benefits. On the other hand, they do charge nominally more to smokers for benefits.
I doubt that smoking has that significant effect on overall longevity and/or general health. Frankly, I think obesity directly causes far more and higher short and long-term costs.
In my experience, the additional $5 per month I was charged for being a smoker (for health insurance, through my employer, a hospital) was far lower than the $15 per month I would have been charged for being overweight, if I were.
Dennis Leary said it best ... I smoke 7000 packs a day and I an NEVER f@#$ing quitting OK ?
Amen to that. Meanwhile, smoke em if ya got em.
The fact that you see others posting their opinions on FR as trying to "force them" on you comes off as very insecure and overly defensive.
Just an observation.
I, as many others in Free Republic have been fighting the war on the smokers for years. Believe me, I am not insecure nor am I overly defensive.
But when we run up against people like you who are trying to take away the rights of others, I refuse to sit on my hands and say nothing.
I will never change your mind and you will NEVER change mine.
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