Research shows the campaign led to millions of attempts to stop smoking and more than 1 million long-term quits<\/p>\n<\/h3>\n
By I. Edwards HealthDay Reporter<\/b>
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WEDNESDAY, Aug. 27, 2025 (HealthDay News) \u2014 The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) will stop airing its \u201cTips From Former Smokers\u201d ads at the end of September, ending a 13-year campaign that helped millions of Americans quit smoking.<\/p>\n
Launched in 2012, the campaign<\/a> featured real people sharing the devastating health effects of smoking \u2014 and pointed viewers to free resources like the 800-QUIT-NOW helpline.<\/p>\n Independent research from RTI International showed that calls to the quitline surged whenever the ads ran and dropped sharply when they paused, CBS News <\/em>said.<\/p>\n One success story is Leslie Allison-Seei, who quit smoking after more than 40 years. In 2014, she began coughing up blood and was rushed to the hospital, where her doctor urged her to stop immediately.<\/p>\n \u201cYou\u2019re done smoking as of today,\u201d she recalled him saying. With nicotine patches, quitline support and a coach named Lori, Leslie quit the next day \u2014 and hasn\u2019t smoked in over 11 years, according to CBS News<\/em>.<\/p>\n Research shows the campaign led to millions of attempts to stop smoking and more than 1 million long-term quits between 2012 and 2023.<\/p>\n It also saved billions of dollars in health care costs by preventing smoking-related illnesses.<\/p>\n But funding for the program has been cut as part of a broader restructuring of the CDC\u2019s chronic disease programs. Without new support, the ads \u2014 widely considered one of the agency\u2019s most effective public health tools \u2014 will stop running when the current contract expires.<\/p>\n “This isn’t a budget cut or a way to make the government more efficient,” one CDC staffer who worked on the campaign told CBS News. <\/em>“Ending the Tips campaign is a decision that will cost people their lives and American taxpayers millions of dollars in health care costs.”<\/p>\n Public health experts warn that many state quitlines, which rely on CDC funding, may reduce services or close altogether. Without the ads and the easy access to free coaching and nicotine replacement therapy, experts fear fewer people will get the help they need to give up tobacco.<\/p>\n Smokers who want to quit can call 800-QUIT-NOW or visit their state quitline. The call is free and takes less than five minutes.<\/p>\n More information<\/strong><\/p>\n Learn more about the “Tips From Former Smokers” campaign<\/a>.<\/p>\n