Nov. 16 (UPI) -- New incentives added to California's Medicaid program helped to reduce the number of smokers, according to researchers.
Research published in the December edition of the American Journal of Preventative Medicine showed that incentives provided by Medi-Cal, the state's Medicaid program, led to more people trying to quit smoking, stopping for a short period of time or abstaining for long periods of time.
Researchers wanted to explore new ways to change behavior in the Medicaid population that led to bad health outcomes. They chose three methods to achieve that goal: increasing phone counseling for smokers through the California Smokers' Helpline; making it easier to obtain nicotine replacement patches; and sending a $20 gift card to Medi-Cal enrollees who complete a 40 minute survey.
Calls to the state's Quitline also rose by 70 percent during that period, leading to 4.5 percent of callers to quit smoking.
Related
"The growing concentration of smokers in Medicaid highlights the need for more effective approaches to reduce smoking in this population," Shu-Hong Zhu, researcher at Department of Family Medicine and Public Health at University of California, San Diego, said in a press release. "I hope this study captures the attention not just of public health officials, but also of their counterparts in Medicaid. Reducing the toll of tobacco in this population should become an urgent priority for all Medicaid programs and plans."
Department of Health Care Services by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services started this research in 2011 after receiving a five-year, $10 million grant.
In 2010, Medicaid expanded eligibility under the Affordable Care Act, pulling new smokers into Medi-Cal. By 2011, nearly 740,000 people enrolled in Medi-Cal.
A year later the incentive program launched, almost doubling the previous year's enrollment to 1.5 million people. Today, California has the second lowest state smoking prevalence in the country at 10.5 percent in the U.S.
Experts say that the Medicaid population suffers disproportionately from chronic diseases and severe psychological distress than people with private insurance.
Other states have tried to incentivize smoking cessation among Medicaid recipients and found mixed results.
For example, an Idaho Medicaid program that offered $100 for people on Medicaid to quit smoking only attracted 2 percent of eligible adults after two years, according to a 2015 USA Today article.
Still, researchers think the increase in people who quit smoking in California will reduce future healthcare costs and net savings.
"Our study demonstrates that investment in an effective smoking cessation intervention for Medicaid smokers can reap large savings down the road," Hai-Yen Sung, researcher at the Institute for Health & Aging, School of Nursing, University of California, said in a press release. "For every $1 invested in these adjunctive services to Medicaid callers, there will be $1.90 savings in healthcare costs within 10 years."
