Population Impact of Reimbursement for Smoking Cessation: A Natural Experiment in the Netherlands.

Willemsen MC, Segaar D, van Schayck CP. Addiction. 2012 Sep 20. [Epub ahead of print]

This study examined the impact of financial reimbursement of quitting medications in combination with telephone counseling behavioral support on the number of enrollees for the Dutch national quitline. In 2010 when there was no reimbursement for medications, a total of 848 smokers enrolled in the quitline. In 2011 when reimbursement for medications was offered, 9,091 smokers enrolled. Once reimbursement ended in 2012, the number of enrollees dropped below the 2010 level. In addition, the proportion of smokers in the population dropped from 27.2% in 2010 to 24.7% in 2011. The authors conclude that the introduction of a national reimbursement system in the Netherlands was associated with a more than ten-fold increase in telephone counseling for smoking cessation and suggests that reimbursement for smoking cessation contributed to improvements in public health.