Use and employer costs of a pharmacotherapy smoking-cessation treatment benefit

Background: Employers cite a lack of information on the cost of insurance coverage for smoking-cessation treatment as a barrier to its provision. This study describes the use of a new insurance benefit for smoking-cessation pharmacotherapy, and its pharmaceutical costs to a large public employer between 2001 and 2003. Methods: Annual enrollment and pharmaceutical claims data were collected from the health plans that contracted with the Wisconsin Department of Employee Trust Funds (ETF). State employees, retirees, and adult dependents who obtained health insurance through the ETF constituted our sample, approximately 150,000/year. Pharmacotherapy benefit use was defined as a paid claim for one of four U.S. Food and Drug Administration-approved smoking-cessation medications. Pharmaceutical cost was defined as the ingredient cost (+) dispensing fee (-) member copayment. Analyses included estimation of the proportion of smokers who used the benefit each year and across 3 years, the average annual cost per user, and the per member per month (PMPM) pharmaceutical cost to the employer. Data were collected from 2001 to 2004 and analyzed in 2005-2006. Results: Annual benefit use among smokers ranged from 6% to 7% with a 3-year rate of approximately 17%. The PMPM cost of the covered pharmacotherapy was approximately $0.13. Conclusions: The cost to employers of providing insurance coverage for smoking-cessation pharmacotherapy to their employees is low. By informing insurance purchasing decisions, these results may facilitate the adoption of much coverage, with the goal of ultimately reducing the proportion of employees who smoke.