A Time to Lead

A Time to Lead

200,000 Americans with behavioral health deaths die from smoking every year.

Explore A Time To Lead, the most compelling case for integrating tobacco treatment in our behavioral health programs presented by some of America’s leading tobacco addiction and mental health leaders.

WHY?
  • Addiction treatment programs are not treating tobacco use disorders the way they treat alcohol, opiate and other substance use disorders eligible for addiction treatment even though these services were created to treat addictions.
  • Tobacco use is the leading cause of preventable disease and death among those with behavioral-health disorders.
  • Our behavioral health providers have the skills, knowledge and programs already in place to successfully expand their scopes of practice to include evidence-based tobacco use disorder treatment.

HOW:

  • By integrating evidence-based tobacco use treatment into our substance use and mental health programs that already exist staffed by skilled behavioral health professionals capable of adding tobacco use to their current scopes of practice — learn how here.
  • By implementing the policies and procedures developed for integrating tobacco/nicotine treatment that have been implemented and proven effective in addiction and mental health programs that have pioneered this major improvement in our public health services.
  • By expecting those in a position to lead tobacco integration in behavioral health services to begin to lead as the right clinical and ethical thing to do.

For more on tobacco and behavioral health, read A Time To Lead.