A recent study found that people with mental illness die 25 years earlier, on average, than the general population, often due to preventable diseases including those caused by smoking.  This research, as well as other efforts, has led to increased interest in addressing smoking cessation among people with mental illness, including the development of a national partnership focused on this issue.  This presentation will discuss the development and progress of this partnership to date, provide an overview of a new study that is focused on this topic, and present ideas for advocacy, research, and practice from the perspective of a burgeoning sociologist.