The prevalence of tobacco use at federally qualified health centers in the United States, 2013

Abstract

We explored tobacco use across federally qualified health centers (FQHCs) and compared data on state-level tobacco use between FQHC patients and the general population. We used data from the Uniform Data System (UDS) and the Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System (BRFSS) to generate estimates of 2013 prevalence of tobacco use among adults aged 18 years or older. According to UDS data, the overall prevalence of tobacco use was 25.8% in FQHCs compared with 20.6% in the general population represented by BRFSS data, an average of 5.2 percentage points (range, -4.9 to 20.9) higher among FQHCs. Among FQHCs, the burden of tobacco use and the opportunity for offering cessation assistance is substantial.