New Clinical Guidelines Urge Hospitals to Proactively Offer Tobacco Cessation Treatment to All Patients

New clinical guidelines, developed in part by experts at MUSC Hollings Cancer Center and the American College of Chest Physicians (CHEST), recommend that hospitals adopt an 'opt-out' approach to tobacco treatment. This means every hospitalized patient who smokes should be proactively offered treatment, shifting from previous approaches that primarily offered treatment to patients who expressed readiness to quit. The guidelines emphasize starting medications like varenicline and providing at least 15 minutes of counseling before patients leave the hospital to support long-term cessation.