42 million
The number of American adults who smoke, according to the 2014 surgeon general's report The Health Consequences of Smoking — 50 Years of Progress. Smoking rates are less than half of what they were 50 years ago, but still hover around 20 percent of the population, the report found.
$300 billion
The estimated annual costs attributable to smoking, including direct medical costs of at least $130 billion and productivity losses of more than $150 billion, according to the same report.
52.4 percent
The percentage of adult smokers who tried to quit in the past year, according to a Centers for Disease Control and Prevention analysis of data from the 2010 National Health Interview Survey.
31.7 percent
The percentage who used medications and/or counseling to help them quit, according to the CDC analysis. Thirty percent used medications (including nicotine patches, bupropion and varenicline), 5.9 percent used counseling (including telephone quit lines, one-on-one counseling and support groups) and 4.3 percent used both.
4.7 percent
The percentage of smokers who successfully quit in 2011, according to a 2015 analysis in Tobacco Control. That percentage has not increased significantly since 2003, when it was 4.5 percent, despite a surge in use of the smoking-cessation drug Chantix (varenicline), which became available in 2006. The drug has not increased quit rates, although previous studies found it to be more effective than other medications, the authors found.
Nov. 19 is the Great American Smokeout
Every year, on the third Thursday of November, smokers across the nation take part in the American Cancer Society Great American Smokeout. They may use the date to make a plan to quit, or plan in advance and then quit smoking that day. Tobacco use remains the single largest preventable cause of disease and premature death in the United States. For information tools and resources, go to American Cancer Societyopens in new window.