Improved behavior could save lives and money, two recent studies show.

A report published by the JAMA Network found that if just one percent of Medicaid recipients stopped smoking, Medicaid would save $2.6 billion a year, with a median annual state savings of $25 million.

Another study, posted by AHA Journals, concludes that improved nutrition labeling that better highlights products’ sugar content could change behavior in ways that would save more than $30 billion in health care costs over the next 20 years – and as much as nearly $60 billion if manufacturers respond to improved sugar labeling by re-engineering some of their products to have less sugar.

Learn more about the financial benefits of reduced smoking in the JAMA Network article “Estimation of 1-Year Changes in Medicaid Expenditures Associated With Reducing Cigarette Smoking Prevalence by 1%” and about the potential cost savings associated with better labeling of the sugar content in processed foods in the AHA Journals report “Cost-Effectiveness of the US Food and Drug Administration Added Sugar Labeling Policy for Improving Diet and Health.”