Varenicline for Smoking Reduction in Veterans Not Ready To Quit

In order to reduce the prevalence of cigarette smoking among Veterans, it is vital that healthcare providers offer effective tobacco treatment to all Veterans who smoke, including those not ready to make a quit attempt. Smoking treatments currently available to Veterans who are not ready to quit are only weakly effective. This project will generate new knowledge about the effectiveness of a promising varenicline-based intervention designed to increase quit attempts and long-term abstinence in Veterans who are initially not ready to quit. This project has great potential to engage Veterans not ready to quit smoking in treatment that increases quit attempts and quitting success, thereby reducing morbidity and mortality caused by smoking in Veterans.

Inclusion Criteria: * Report smoking an average of 5 or more cigarettes daily for the previous 6 months * Not ready to set a quit date in the next 30 days but willing to cut down on their smoking * Able to read, write, and speak English * Be medically eligible to use study medications (NRT or varenicline) * If female, use an approved method of birth control while using study medication * Be at least 21 years old * Be a Veteran Exclusion Criteria: * Unable to give informed, voluntary consent to participate * Current use of any pharmacotherapy for smoking cessation * Use of non-cigarette tobacco products as primary form of tobacco use * Incarceration