Incentives for Smoking Cessation during Pregnancy – 8/31/07

Q:Vermont is wondering if other states could share any protocols/experiences they have had with the use of incentives for smoking cessation during pregnancy?

A:

  1. Alabama: Alabama does not offer incentives for smoking cessation during pregnancy, although our quitline does have a special protocol they use when working with pregnant callers.
     
  2. Kansas: We have not provided incentives to pregnant women who have tried to quit/were referred to the Kansas Tobacco Quitline.  We have provided incentives/reimbursement for health care providers.
     
  3. Louisiana: Make Yours a Fresh Start Family (MYFSF) is part of the Louisiana Campaign for Tobacco- Free Living. The program trains providers on how to counsel their pregnant patients or mothers of pediatric patients to quit smoking using the 5A’s counseling technique and providing and linking resources for cessation. The program is an incentive program for the providers based on quarterly reports. Points acquired from the quarterly reports can be redeemed for more educational materials (posters, pamphlets, etc), cessation aids (baby bibs, rattles, piggy banks, etc), or parties for clinic staff.
     
  4. Michigan: This is no longer provided to clients seen in our Smoke Free Baby and Me program but was when funding was available.  The Quit Kit contained the following:
     
    • Tooth brush
    • Tooth paste
    • Dental Floss
    • T-shirt size 12-18 months with the state of Michigan printed on the front of the shirt and a caption that read: "I'm a Smoke Free Baby".
       
    This kit was very well received by those who got them.
     
  5. New Hampshire: Incentives that I have seen are grocery store "gift cards"; child care for group counseling participants including transportation and "lite lunch/supper."
     
  6. Washington: One of the Washington’s program initiatives in the last year was to develop an outreach campaign aimed at pregnant women who smoke.  In Washington, the rate of smoking during pregnancy is 10.2 percent.  Although the rate has decreased by 30 percent since the Tobacco Program began in 2000, there are still about 8,000 babies born in the state each year to women who smoked during pregnancy.  In addition, over 40 percent of women who quit smoking during pregnancy begin again after giving birth. The Quit for You Quit for Two (QYQ2) campaign aims to reach out to these women and their family, friends and healthcare providers to educate about the dangers related to tobacco exposure and the tailored quit services offered by the Tobacco Quit Line.  During the past year, QYQ2 educational and promotional materials have been distributed through First Steps Agencies, YWCAs, social service organizations and local contractors.  These materials encourage healthcare providers to engage women in conversations about quitting smoking, as well as promote the quit line as a resource to kick the habit.  In addition, media and grassroots outreach strategies were employed to challenge social norms associated with smoking during and after pregnancy. Articles highlighting the issue along with quit line services were placed in ten medical association newsletters, over two dozen weekly newspapers and several parenting magazines such as Parent Map and Seattle’s Child. Roughly 750 transit ads, featuring a hard-hitting image of a child in an incubator, ran in counties across the state, and awareness stickers, acting as mini-PSAs, were distributed to local businesses through contractors.  Currently, a PSA voiced by Dr. Maxine Hayes is running on several radio stations.  We’re now gearing up for phase II of the campaign.
     
  7. West Virginia: While West Virginia has tried to 'incentivize' getting pregnant women to quit tobacco use, we have no successful experiences with incentives to get these at risk women (and their unborn) to quit.  WVDTP does have several different state and community level programs addressing pregnant smokers, including free cessation services including protocols allowing use of OTC NRT products. Kathy Danberry, Cessation Program Manager, 304-558-6260. Information can also be found at our website.

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