I'm not a smoker, nor will I ever be. While I respect one's right to do what they please, smoking is a nasty habit and clearly a major health risk.
In recent years governments at the local and provincial level have stepped up their anti-smoking campaigns by banning smoking in parks and some public places. Long gone are the days when you could just light up in a pub and restaurant. If you are a smoker, you now have to grab a few puffs in designated areas or outside the pub or restaurant.
Sports facilities such as Scotiabank Field at Nat Bailey Stadium and Rogers Arena have banned smoking from their buildings.
I'm sure we all have family and friends who smoke or have smoked and if they are still smoking, wish they would finally butt out.
My sister was a chronic smoker all through high school and quit about a year ago. I was more than proud of her for butting out and quitting her habit. My grandmother was a smoker for years, and sadly earlier this year, she lost her battle with lung cancer and other health complications and died. My two aunts continue to smoke as do both of my cousins.
But thanks to the provincial government this week, my friends and family have all the incentive they need to kick their nicotine habits - and so do your family and friends.
Starting today (Sept. 30), nicotine replacement therapies are now available at no cost and smoking cessation prescription drugs will be covered under PharmaCare.
By calling HealthLink BC at 8-1-1 and registering for the smoking cessation program, B.C. smokers who are covered by MSP and who wish to quit will be able to receive free nicotine gum or patches either by mail or at their local community pharmacy once they receive a reference number from HealthLink BC.
As part of this program, varenicline (Champix) and bupropion (Zyban) will also be covered by B.C. PharmaCare and will be available with a prescription. People will need to see their doctor for a prescription and be registered in a PharmaCare plan to receive coverage for these products. The level of coverage will depend on a person's PharmaCare plan.
Eligible B.C. residents can receive a single continuous course of treatment lasting up to 12 consecutive weeks with either a prescription smoking cessation drug or an NRT product once every calendar year.
This is a wonderful initiative that the provincial government and its partners the Pharmacy Association of B.C., QuitNow Services and the B.C. Lung Association are initiating. The estimated cost of the program is between $15 to $25 million depending on the number of individuals who use the program, and I'm certain that critics will be chastising the Liberal government for spending this kind of money on this program, but I can't see why.
One just has to take a look at the startling statistics to see why this initiative is so important. While B.C. has the lowest smoking rate in Canada at 14.3 per cent, there are approximately 550,000 British Columbians who smoke. An estimated 70 per cent of smokers in B.C. want to quit.
And more than 6,000 British Columbians die each year from senseless tobacco use.
I applaud the provincial government for this program and for creating this incentive. It's a health step in the right direction.
