Mission
As part of the Clinical Public Health group, Tobacco & Health: Policy & Programs is responsible for the development and oversight of public health policy and clinical programs for the VA Health Care System relating to smoking and tobacco use cessation.
VA clinical programs directed towards helping Veterans stop tobacco use currently include consistent screening for tobacco use during primary care visits and a wide variety of clinical programs that range from individual counseling to participation in evidence-based smoking cessation specialty clinical programs. A wide variety of FDA-approved nicotine replacement therapies and smoking cessation medications are available in the VHA formulary. The VA/DoD Clinical Practice Guidelines and the U.S. Public Health Service Clinical Practice Guideline: Treating of Tobacco Use and Dependence also provide clinical guidance to VHA health care providers on a menu of evidence-based tobacco use cessation interventions including brief counseling, pharmacotherapy, telephone counseling, intensive treatment, and recommendations for cessation with specialty populations. The guidelines reflect a population-based approach to tobacco cessation as a major public health challenge.
Tobacco & Health: Policy & Programs has a technical advisory group that serves to provide consultation and expert advice on smoking and tobacco use cessation, models of best practices in smoking cessation care for Veteran populations and clinical care settings in VHA, and the health effects of tobacco use and related illnesses. This advisory group is made up of VA health care providers representing pulmonology/critical care, primary care, preventive medicine, and smoking cessation, mental health, substance use treatment, as well as administrators, researchers and educators.
Program Director
Kim Hamlett-Berry, Ph.D.
Director, Tobacco & Health: Policy & Programs
Clinical Public Health
Smoking and Tobacco Use Cessation Technical Advisory Group
- Dr. Jean Beckham, Durham VA Medical Center
- Dr. Pam Belperio, Publich Health Strategic Health Care Group
- Dr. Timothy Carmody, San Francisco VA Medical Center
- Dr. Judith Cooney, Connecticut Veterans Health Care System
- Dr. Peg Dundon, VA Western NY Health Care System
- Dr. Steven S. Fu, Minneapolis VA Medical Center
- Dr. Mark Geraci, Pharmacy Benefits Management Strategic Health Care Group
- Dr. Daniel Kivlahan, Puget Sound VA Medical Center
- Dr. Laura Kroupa, St. Louis VA Medical Center
- Dr. David Macpherson, Pittsburgh VA Medical Center
- Dr. Miles McFall, Puget Sound VA Medical Center
- Ann Terri Murphy, RN, MSN, National Center for Prevention
- Dr. Scott Sherman, Sepulveda VA Medical Center
Contact Us
Kim Hamlett-Berry, Ph.D.
Director, Tobacco & Health: Policy & Programs
Clinical Public Health
kim.hamlett@va.gov
Note: Emails sent to this address are not secure. Please do not include personal data. To send a secure email, use VA's Ask a Question - IRIS (a secure website contracted to VA). Scroll down to the middle of the right-hand side of the page to find "Ask a Question."
Connect with Us
Veterans Health
