Matthew Bars

Matthew Bars is a board-certified tobacco treatment specialist, shrinkologist, and health-tech innovator, who has spent his career on the front lines of addiction, medicine, and public policy. Known professionally as the “Chief Quitting Officer,” Bars works with the Fire Department of New York City, other patients, physicians and other clinicians, translating addiction science into real-world outcomes.

Smoking Guns is his debut novel, drawing on decades of experience inside healthcare systems, regulatory battles, and the human cost of nicotine dependence. Blending medical realism with high-stakes crime and corporate intrigue, Bars brings an insider’s authenticity to a story where science, money, power and corruption collide.

Matt continues to build and advocate for innovative tobacco-treatment programs—when he’s not writing. A born and raised native of New York City, he lives in New Jersey.