Vape starter kits will be offered to around 1,000,000 smokers in England to try and make the country ‘smoke-free’.
The scheme, which is a world first, aims to get one million smokers to swap cigarettes for vaping and will also see pregnant women who quit smoking be offered up to £400 in voucher payments.
With around 9% of women in England still smoke during pregnancy, it is hoped that providing behavioral support and financial incentives – in the form of vouchers throughout pregnancy – will help all pregnant women to quit smoking by the end of the year.
Deborah Longe, Quality and Standards Advisor at the Royal College of Midwives (RCM), and its public health lead, said: “This is a positive step and one we welcome. The evidence suggests that these schemes – which have been tried locally and regionally – do help to reduce smoking in pregnancy. Statistically rates of stillbirths are higher amongst women who smoke in pregnancy and quitting smoking is also simply one of the best things a woman and her partner can do to protect their baby’s health.
“However, this move must be matched with Government and local investment in other areas that help pregnant women to quit smoking. Significant reductions in public health budgets have resulted in cuts to smoking cessation services and support and this needs to be reversed. Also, longstanding, and serious midwife shortages are affecting the ability of midwives to offer women advice and support to stop smoking. The contact a midwife has with women during pregnancy is a window of opportunity to make a significant impact on their health, but they need the resources behind them to do this effectively. Resources must also be targeted towards more disadvantaged communities where smoking in pregnancy tends to be higher.”
The scheme, which is expected to cost around £45 million over two years, will be funded by the Department of Health and Social Care’s budget.
Deborah Longe added, “If the Government really is serious about this, investment must come on multiple fronts and this is not happening. We must invest for the long-term now because it will save lives and money in the future.”
