Some companies are also penalizing employees who don’t give up cigarettes by hitting them with higher health insurance premiums.
In the previous five years, the 7 percent of retailers were caught selling tobacco to underage teens. This year the number caught jumped to 15 percent of the time.
Cancer often takes a heavy toll not only on people’s bodies but on their finances as well. And just as some types of cancer are more deadly than others, some types cause more financial pain,
Washington’s Tobacco Quit Line will no longer provide services to the general population, but King County residents and some other groups can get help other sources.
Cancer’s impact on the developing world goes largely unrecognized and unaddressed, panelists said at a Seattle World Affairs Council event held Wednesday night at the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center.
Washington residents who are ready to quit smoking can now receive at least two weeks of free nicotine patches or gum if they call the state Tobacco Quitline in May or June. People without insurance can also get eight weeks of nicotine replacement therapy. Those on Medicaid are already eligible for a 12 week supply.
Electronic cigarettes are drawing heavy media and marketing attention, but it’s not known whether they help smokers cut down or quit.
While quitting smoking is tough, you have a better chance of succeeding when you have help: smokers who get counseling, combined with medication and other support, have a much better chance of quitting and staying tobacco-free.
The U.S. must spend $500 million on prevention this year. Rather than spreading it around, writes Robert Gould, it would be best to target one thing: tobacco.
An analysis of lung cancer screening results in 3,200 people finds that 21% to 33% of the suspicious nodules found by CT scans are not really cancer.
Smoking just got a lot more expensive in Washington state. The a new federal tax that went into affect April 1 added 62 cents to the cost of a pack making the total federal tax on a pack to $1.01. With the new federal taxes plus state taxes, the pack of brand name cigarettes at [...]
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Seattle Times Health News
Experts divided over recommendation to screen children for cholesterol
Some clinicians say universal screening is an important tool to help identify children who are genetically predisposed to high cholesterol and to pinpoint others who could benefit from treatment. Others express concerns that screening may do more harm than good.
People in state high-risk insurance plans often feel left behind
The federal health law set up new plans that are cheaper and more comprehensive than the older ones run by states but consumers need to go without insurance for six months to qualify.
Peeking in on your doctor’s notes
Although federal law guarantees patients the right to examine and get copies of their medical records, providers haven’t always made it easy to do so. But the movement to give patients direct access to their health information has picked up steam, and policymakers have encouraged it as a way to empower patients to help manage their health and their medical care.
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