American Lung Association and WellPoint Inc. Launch Smoking Cessation Campaign Offering Support for the “Quitter in You”

Washington, D.C. (April 8, 2013)—

The American Lung Association is partnering with WellPoint Inc. to support smokers in their efforts to quit for good through its “Quitter in You,” smoking cessation campaign that is designed to change the way people look at quitting by acknowledging that past quit attempts are not failures, but are normal and necessary steps along the way to quitting for good.  WellPoint awarded the American Lung Association $1.5 million in support of the program.  A survey from the organization found that 6 out of 10 former smokers were not able to successfully quit on their first try and required multiple attempts to quit smoking for good.

“The American Lung Association is grateful for this partnership with WellPoint which will allow us to help even more smokers on their journey to becoming smoke-free,” said Harold Wimmer, National President and CEO of the American Lung Association.  “Whether it’s their second quit attempt or their seventh, we want to give every smoker the support they need to quit for good.”

The “Quitter in You” campaign will feature a new web site, public service announcements, and a wealth of personalized tools and support from the American Lung Association's Freedom From Smoking® Lung Helpline (1-800-LUNG-USA), Freedom From Smoking® Online and Freedom From Smoking® in-person clinic.  The campaign is launching this spring in 14 target markets where WellPoint has branded health plans:  Louisville, Ky.; Columbus, Ohio; Las Vegas, Nev.; Indianapolis, Ind.; St. Louis, Mo.; Milwaukee, Wis.; Richmond, Va.; Portland, Maine; Atlanta, Ga.; Manchester, N.H.; Denver, Colo.; New York City; New Haven, Conn.; and Sacramento, Calif.  Local American Lung Associations will be working with WellPoint’s local affiliate companies on this partnership.

“Quitting smoking is one of the most powerful changes a person can make for their health, but it’s not easy.  Studies show it typically takes several attempts before most smokers quit for good, so it’s important that a person not give up,” said Dr. Sam Nussbaum, WellPoint’s Executive Vice President of Clinical Health Policy and Chief Medical Officer.  “The American Lung Association’s Quitter in You smoking cessation initiative helps educate and empower people trying to quit smoking, bringing them one step closer to success.”

The “Quitter in You” campaign is made possible through funding from WellPoint Inc. Helping more Americans quit smoking remains a top public health priority for the American Lung Association. According to the latest figures from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, more than 43 million American adults are current smokers. Smoking-related diseases claim an estimated 443,000 lives each year, including those affected indirectly, such as babies born prematurely due to prenatal maternal smoking and victims of “secondhand” exposure to tobacco’s carcinogens. Smoking cost the United States more than $193 billion in 2004, including $97 billion in lost productivity and $96 billion in direct health care expenditures, or an average of $4,446 per adult smoker.

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About the American Lung Association Now in its second century, the American Lung Association is the leading organization working to save lives by improving lung health and preventing lung disease. With your generous support, the American Lung Association is “Fighting for Air” through research, education and advocacy. For more information about the American Lung Association, a holder of the Better Business Bureau Wise Giving Guide Seal, or to support the work it does, call 1-800-LUNG-USA (1-800-586-4872) or visit www.lung.org.

About WellPoint, Inc. At WellPoint, we believe there is an important connection between our members' health and well-being—and the value we bring our customers and shareholders. So each day we work to improve the health of our members and their communities. And, we can make a real difference since we have more than 33 million people in our branded health plans, and approximately 64 million people served through our subsidiaries. As an independent licensee of the Blue Cross and Blue Shield Association, WellPoint serves members as the Blue Cross licensee for California; the Blue Cross and Blue Shield licensee for Colorado, Connecticut, Georgia, Indiana, Kentucky, Maine, Missouri (excluding 30 counties in the Kansas City area), Nevada, New Hampshire, New York (as the Blue Cross Blue Shield licensee in 10 New York City metropolitan and surrounding counties and as the Blue Cross or Blue Cross Blue Shield licensee in selected upstate counties only), Ohio, Virginia (excluding the Northern Virginia suburbs of Washington, D.C.), and Wisconsin. In a majority of these service areas, WellPoint's plans do business as Anthem Blue Cross, Anthem Blue Cross and Blue Shield, Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Georgia and Empire Blue Cross Blue Shield, or Empire Blue Cross (in the New York service areas). WellPoint also serves customers throughout the country as UniCare and in certain California, Arizona and Nevada markets through our CareMore subsidiary. Our 1-800 CONTACTS, Inc. subsidiary offers customers online sales of contact lenses, eyeglasses and other ocular products.  Additional information about WellPoint is available at www.wellpoint.com.