Trying to quit smoking? Free help to be offered to Wisconsin smokers trying to kick the habit

MILWAUKEE (AP) — Wisconsin smokers who see doctors at several clinics in the Milwaukee, Madison and Janesville areas for any reason will be automatically offered free help in quitting under an experimental study.

The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reports (http://bit.ly/1mM6bDI ) the research will focus on determining the most effective approaches for helping patients quit smoking. It's being funded by a $12 million grant from the National Institutes of Health. It's the largest grant the University of Wisconsin Center for Tobacco Research and Intervention has received since it was founded in 1992.

The study is expected to provide counseling and-or medication for more than 2,000 people at 20 clinics over five years.

Researchers know counseling and medication work, but don't know how much of each works best, and how to best deliver that treatment systematically.