News Releases - November 17, 2004

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contacts:

Deb Wiethop
314.923.4767
deborah.wiethop@wellpoint.com

Smoking Cessation National Quit Line 1-800-QUITNOW www.smokefree.gov

This new and free quitline was announced at a press conference by Health and Human Services Secretary Tommy G. Thompson. The quitline, now available throughout the country, routes a caller to a local cessation counselor who tailors services to the individual caller. Counselors help smokers come up with appropriate quit plans and schedules, provide pertinent information regarding the use and access of nicotine replacement therapy, and provide answers to questions and concerns. They can also inform callers about additional local cessation services.

This toll free number is part of Secretary Tommy Thompson's broader initiative designed to help Americans quit smoking. As you probably are aware, tobacco kills 440,000 American smokers each year. Of the 46 million US smokers, 70% want to quit. But they have trouble doing so alone. Recent studies of quitlines have shown that these tools can double (or in some cases triple) the chances of successfully quitting smoking.

Quitting smoking is the most effective thing a person can do for his or her health. Referring a person to a quitline is a quick way for you to emphasize the importance of quitting and provide an effective tool. The Smoking Cessation Leadership Center—a national program office of the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation working with leaders of health professions and health care institutions, is a proponent of quitlines and encourages all to take advantage of this convenient, effective cessation service and refer someone in need to call 1-800-QUITNOW.

Additional smoking cessation resources including instant messaging and on-line quit guides are available at www.smokefree.gov

For a TLC: The Last Cigarette Quit Kit and Calendar for Qutting Cold Turkey visit our Healthy Living page.

UNICARE serves approximately 1.7 million medical members and is the national operating subsidiary of WellPoint Health Networks Inc., one of the nation’s largest publicly traded health care companies. WellPoint serves the health care needs of more than 14 million medical members and more than 44 million specialty members. WellPoint offers a broad spectrum of quality network-based health products including open access PPO, POS and hybrid products, HMO and specialty products. Specialty products include pharmacy benefit management, dental, utilization management, vision, mental health, life and disability insurance, long term care insurance, flexible spending accounts, COBRA administration, and Medicare supplements.

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