BUFFALO, N.Y. — On Thursday Governor Andrew Cuomo and the Department of Financial Services issued a guidance to NY state insurers that they cover costs associated with quitting vaping .
E-cigarette usage has gone up dramatically in recent years. As of December 3, there have been 2,291 vaping related illnesses reported throughout the US, resulting in 48 deaths.
"E-cigarette use has exploded in recent years and many of the people who want to quit are now having trouble because vaping is more addicting than they previously thought," Governor Cuomo said. "New Yorkers trying to stop vaping need access to treatment, and this action will require insurance companies to provide the same coverage they would for smoking cessation to anyone seeking to stop using e-cigarettes."
The guidance continues to say that since e-cigarettes contain nicotine, which is highly addictive, insurers should give similar coverage to vaping illnesses that they would to regular smoking illnesses. Some examples of things the guidance is proposing are screening, behavioral interventions, FDA-approved pharmacotherapy for adults and behavioral interventions for school-aged children and adolescents.
