Wouldn’t it be great if you could kill two birds with one stone – stop smoking cigarettes and get paid for it?… While you may think I am blowing smoke, it actually is possible!
Clinical Trials
Researchers are always trying to come up with ways to help people quit smoking and to help with that, they often conduct studies and clinical trials.
As a participant not only you receive state-of-the-art treatment, nicotine-replacement aids, counseling, as well as medications for free, many studies also pay you cash for your participation.
Depending on the study, you can expect anywhere from $20-25 to up to $2000 or more. Although the average trial pays around a few hundred dollars. obviously,
long-term studies come with bigger compensations.
I remember last year when I was looking for other clinical trials to participate in, I came across a smoking clinical trial. The pay was $1500. But it was a two week-long study where you had to show up at the end of everyday to answer questions and for them to check a few things (heart rate etc).
On top of the reward, they were also paying for your commute. Unfortunately, I had to miss it since I wasn’t planning to quit (no, sadly I sill am a smoker).
How Do You Find these Trials?
There are a few ways you can find clinical trials like the one I came across.
- ClinicalTrials.gov
The best option is to check with The National Institute of Health’s websiteClinicalTrials.gov. They list paying research studies from around the country and you can search by city. So, it’s very easy to locate studies near you. - Craigslist (and other classified sites)
usually, people in charge will put up ads on Craigslist, local classified and newspapers. So, keeping your eye on such websites and newspapers is a great way of spotting them. - Local Research Medical Centers & Universities
Another easy and quick way is to simply contact your local research medical centers and universities to see whether they have any study coming up.
Other Options
- Your Employer
According to a recent study, smoking employees cost companies $6,000 a year more. Which is why Heartspm, a pest control company in Los Angeles pays its employees a $500 bonus to attend cigarette smoker cessation clinic of their choice and remaining smoke free for one year. So, be sure to check with your employer to see if they have anything like that. - Check with Your Local Government
A few years back, the authorities in Dundee, a Scottish city, designed program where they paid $25 a week to stop smoking. You can also check with your local government. There have been two cities so far that have actually paid their citizens to stop smoking cigarettes.
Paying people may just be the best way to quit smoking for lost of people, including a mom from Dundee who actually did that by participating in their weekly compensation program.
I know I should probably be saying something like not only you make money you also improve your health by quitting, but somehow it doesn’t feel right since I have a cigarette in my hand as I type this.