Idaho Program Offers Free Diapers, Wipes To Mothers Who Quit Smoking

Idaho residents could get up to a year's worth of free diapers if they quit smoking. Image courtesy of ReadyElements/Pixabay

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Rachel Sun reports on an Idaho program that incentivizes new mothers and the family members of infants to quit smoking. (Runtime 0:56)

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If you have a baby in the house and quit smoking, you could get up to a year’s worth of diapers and wipes for free. A tobacco cessation program in Idaho is offering this incentive to those living with a baby under 12 months old.

Mothers and families with a new baby in the house can get a load of diapers and wipes — each month for free — if they quit smoking. According to data from the Idaho Department of Health and Welfare — last year 384 people did just that.

Josie Graham, a health program manager at IDHW, says the program resulted in 609 packages of diapers and wipes being distributed.

Graham: “So it’s really helpful to people that need that financial incentive to not have to buy their own diapers and wipes, and then of course, the awesome added benefit of improving (infants’) health and the health of the people they live with.”

Participants who test negative for tobacco use each month are eligible until the baby turns 12 months old. So, if they sign up when the baby is born, they can earn a year’s worth of supplies.

That’s a seven hundred and ninety-dollar value – not to mention the money saved from not buying cigarettes.

Those interested in the program can learn more by contacting their local public health district or calling the Idaho CareLine at 2-1-1 or 1-800-926-2588.

This report is made possible by the Lewis-Clark Valley Healthcare Foundation in partnership with NWPB, the Lewiston Tribune, and the Moscow-Pullman Daily news. This report was produced with assistance from the Public Media Journalists Association Editor Corps funded by the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, a private corporation funded by the American people.