Washington State’s Tobacco Quitline is back, thanks to new funding from the Legislature and a grant from the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
The Quitline, snuffed out by budget cuts in June 2011, is a toll-free telephone service designed to help people kick their tobacco habit.
Starting immediately, all adults in Washington, regardless of their insurance status, can call the Quitline (800-QUIT-NOW; 877-2NO-FUME in Spanish) for free counseling, a personal plan and kit for quitting, and referrals to local resources. Eligible callers also can get a supply of nicotine patches or gum.
Cost of running the Quitline for the next fiscal year will be about $1.9 million, said Tim Church, spokesman for the state Department of Health. Most of the money is coming from the state’s Tobacco Control Program; the remainder, about $400,000, is from the CDC grant.
More than 170,000 people have received help from the Quitline since it began in 2000, Church said.
rob.carson@thenewstribune.com253-597-8693
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