Restaurant and bar owner Jesse Morreale plans to go to a hypnotist to stop smoking so he’ll be ready when a statewide smoking ban takes effect Saturday.
“I imagine after the ban starts to become a big hassle for people inside, that’s when (hypnotists) will start seeing the phone calls rolling in,” Morreale said.
It’s not only hypnotists expecting to cash in on the smoking ban in coming weeks.
National drug companies often see a 30 percent to 50 percent spike in retail sales of nicotine patches and gum after a smoking ban goes into effect, said Jennifer May, a GlaxoSmithKline spokeswoman in Pittsburgh. The maker of Nicoderm CQ patches and Nicorette gum hasn’t seen any uptick in Colorado sales yet, however, May said.
Colorado pharmacies, grocery stores and state health department officials are also readying to help smokers looking to kick the habit.
“We’re not sure what to expect,” said Carol Hizely, a Walgreens spokeswoman in Denver. “We’re just going to watch and react to what the response is.”
In New York City, where the Smoke Free Air Act went into effect in 2003, 200,000 people stopped smoking between 2002 and 2004, according to a city survey, said Sara Perl, assistant commissioner for the Bureau of Tobacco Control at the New York City Department of Health and Hygiene. The city spent $2.3 million for 35,000 nicotine-patch kits this year for anyone who signed up for them, Perl said.
In Colorado, state health department officials have passed out 26,000 nicotine-patch kits since December, said Jodi Kopke, director of the state tobacco education and prevention project. The kits are paid for by a $6 million stop-smoking budget this year, part of $25 million budgeted for all Colorado anti-smoking programs. Any Coloradan who signs up can get a kit; 90 percent of those who sign up take one.
The Colorado Quitline, also paid for by the state’s stop-smoking budget, is hiring 15 part-time temporary counselors in anticipation of the ban, said Mark Salley, communications director for the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment.
And health officials have launched an $800,000 ad campaign.
“We expect to see the numbers go up significantly as we get closer and closer to July 1,” said Cindy Haugland, the Quitline client manager. “The TV ads are just coming on this week.”
The number of smokers trying to quit through hypnosis appears to be at an all-time high, said Jolee Henry, a licensed Denver psychotherapist.
“The smoking-cessation business has never been better. I reach new highs all the time in my private practice,” Henry said.
Smokers who come to her pay $150 for a one-time visit or $225 for her “stop smoking” package. Henry said she sees two or three clients per day.
Staff writer Beth Potter can be reached at 303-820-1503 or bpotter@denverpost.com.
