Unconventional Financial Incentives for Smoking Cessation

Miami VA Healthcare System

Status: Unknown

Conditions: Smoking Cessation

Study type: Observational

Funder types: Other U.S. Federal agency

Identifiers

NCT03608852

1160736-1

Details and patient eligibility

About

The proposed study is a randomized study of actively smoking veterans cared for at the Miami VA Medical Center. Subjects are randomized into 2 groups and will all receive a regimen of nicotine replacement therapy (NRT) standardized to their smoking habit. Subjects are followed biweekly for smoking cessation by using biochemical tests (exCO and COHb) to determine smoking abstinence. The first group called the Banked-Money Group will have $50 placed in a 'bank account' for every clinic visit where their tests reveal abstinence from smoking. As a modified commitment contract, the Banked-Money Group can only withdraw the accrued money at the end of the trial if they complete the trial by quitting smoking for the entire 6 months. The second group called the Reward Group will directly receive $50 for every clinic visit where their tests reveal abstinence from smoking.

Enrollment: 36 estimated patients

Sex: All

Ages: 18+ years old

Volunteers: No Healthy Volunteers

Inclusion criteria

Enrollment criteria include subjects 18 years of age or older, currently smoking at least a half a pack of cigarettes a day, who have at least a ten-pack year smoking history, are interested in quitting smoking, agree to submit to exhaled breath and ABG analysis and have reliable means of visiting the clinic every two weeks. Subjects must be able to tolerate NRT including patches and lozenges and meet with the VA smoking cessation counselor.

Exclusion criteria

Subjects will not be enrolled if they are currently taking varenicline as the VA disallows concurrent use of varenicline and NRT.

Trial design

36 participants in 2 patient groups

Banked-money group

Description:

This group will have $50 placed in a 'bank account' for every clinic visit where their tests reveal abstinence from smoking. As a modified commitment contract, the Banked-Money Group can only withdraw the accrued money at the end of the trial if they complete the trial by quitting smoking for the entire 6 months.

Reward group

Description:

This group will directly receive $50 for every clinic visit where their tests reveal abstinence from smoking.