Source
Division of HIV/AIDS Prevention, National Center for HIV, STD, and TB Prevention, Atlanta, GA 30333, USA.
Abstract
OBJECTIVES:
This study compared health behavior variables for all US households and households with telephones to measure the potential impact of telephone coverage on estimates from telephone surveys.
METHODS:
Data were derived from the 1991 through 1994 version of the National Health Interview Survey.
RESULTS:
Ninety-five percent of respondents lived in households with telephones. Differences in health indicators were small (< 1%) in comparisons between all households and those with telephones. Results were similar when only respondents below the poverty level were included.
CONCLUSIONS:
Telephone noncoverage effects appear to be small, supporting the use of telephone surveys for health risk behavior surveillance with most population groups.