Data Sources

1. Information regarding cigarette consumption comes from:
   
   

   Oregon Department of Revenue Cigarette Tax Receipts. Data on the number of cigarettes smoked by Oregonians are estimated by tobacco tax revenue collected by the Oregon Department of Revenue. The Department of Revenue's Monthly Receipt Statements include data on cigarettes tax collections. Packs of cigarettes sold are calculated by taking the cigarette tax total divided by tax rate per pack. Packs per capita is calculated by dividing the total number of cigarettes packs sold by the population estimate for Oregon. Data on cigarette consumption for the nation comes from Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's (CDC) Office of Smoking and Health.
   

 

2. Information regarding adult tobacco use, including prevalence of tobacco use, smokers interest in quitting, attitudes toward tobacco, questions regarding exposure to environmental tobacco smoke and attitudes about exposure to ETS, information about smokers perceptions of health care, providers assistance in helping people quit smoking, and related topics, comes the following surveys:
   

   Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System (BRFSS)
   The Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System is an ongoing random-digit dialed telephone survey of adults concerning health-related behaviors. The BRFSS was developed by the CDC and is conducted in all states in the U.S. Each year, between 3,000 and 7,000 adult Oregonians are interviewed. The data are weighted to represent all adults aged 18 years and older. A core set of questions, which includes the question on smoking prevalence, is asked annually and other topics are surveyed on a rotating basis of two years. Each state may add questions to the CDC survey, and Oregon asks an additional 40 questions on attitudes and behaviors regarding tobacco.

   SmokeLess States Survey
   The Oregon Public Opinion Survey on Tobacco Policy was undertaken in 1994, 1996 and 1998 by the Tobacco-Free Coalition of Oregon (TOFCO) and funded by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation. Participants in each survey included approximately 650 Oregonians aged 18 or older randomly selected from the telephone directory. Respondents were surveyed about their opinions on increasing tobacco taxes, secondhand smoke, practices of the tobacco industry, restricting children's access to tobacco, and tobacco advertising.
   

 

3. Information regarding youth tobacco use, including prevalence of youth tobacco use by school grade and youth access to tobacco, comes from the following surveys:
   

   Youth Risk Behavior Survey (YRBS)
   The YRBS was developed by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and has been administered in a sample of Oregon schools every other year since 1991. The sample size has varied between 1,600 and 32,000 and the final data are weighted to more accurately represent the Oregon high school population. The questionnaire assesses behavioral risks in Oregon high school students (grades nine through 12) in the areas of vehicle safety, weapon carrying and violence, tobacco use, alcohol use, other drug use, sexual activity and pregnancy, HIV knowledge and attitudes, eating behaviors, nutrition, exercise, and access to health care including use of school-based health centers. A sample of middle school students (grades six through eight) was added in 1997.

   Oregon Public School Drug Use Survey
   This anonymous survey has been administered biannually since 1986 by the Oregon Office of Alcohol and Drug Abuse Programs (OADAP) through the Oregon public school system. It is patterned after the ongoing national surveys of the National Institute on Drug Abuse and has included eighth and eleventh graders since 1986; a sixth grade sample was added in 1994. Schools are randomly sampled using a stratified sample design. The questionnaire assesses community characteristics, tobacco use, drug use, alcohol use, drug/alcohol use in student's peer and family network, refusal skills, susceptibility to future use, and attitudes toward school and family.
   

 

4. Information regarding the number of women who smoke during their pregnancy comes from:
   

   Birth Certificate Statistical File.Data from the Birth Certificate Statistical File are coded from birth certificates collected by the State Registrar and represent all births occurring in Oregon and all births occurring out-of-state to Oregon residents. This database includes parental identifying and demographic information, conditions of the newborn, congenital anomalies, medical factors of pregnancy, method of delivery, complications of labor and delivery, smoking, drinking, or illicit drug use during pregnancy, antenatal and intrapartum procedures, and payor source. The birth data analyzed for this report consist of births to Oregon residents.
   

 

5. Information about the morbidity, mortality and economic costs related to tobacco use comes from:
   

   Death Certificate Statistical File. The Death Certificate Statistical File includes all deaths occurring in Oregon and deaths occurring out-of-state to Oregon residents. Data are obtained from death certificates that are collected by the State Registrar. The data are used to examine trends in mortality and causes of death. Variables in this database include cause of death, decedent's identifying information, date and place of death, occupation of the decedent, whether the death was related to tobacco use, education of decedent, marital status of decedent, and county, place, and date of injury (if applicable). The mortality data analyzed for this report consist of deaths of Oregon residents.

   Smoking-Attributable Morbidity, Mortality and Economic Costs (SAMMEC III)
   SAMMEC III is a computer software program developed by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to calculate several measures of the impact of cigarette smoking for the entire U.S. and for each state. Using state-specific data on smoking prevalence (from the BRFSS), overall mortality rates, and population data, SAMMEC generates the number of deaths and death rates due to smoking, years of life lost due to premature death from cigarette smoking, and lost productivity (earnings) due to illness and premature death from smoking-related diseases.
   

 

6. Information regarding County, School and Tribal progress toward program implementation comes from Periodic Progress Reports submitted by the staff of the county coalitions, schools and tribes to the Oregon Health Services. Information regarding Oregon Tobacco Quit Line utilization is also derived from periodic reports from the Oregon Tobacco Quit Line staff to OHS.

Information regarding Oregonians exposure to messages from the Tobacco Prevention and Education program's media campaign comes from the Reach and Frequency Analysis done in 1999 by Asher/Gal and Partners.

A more detailed description of these data sources can be found in Oregon Tobacco Facts, available from the Tobacco Program or by calling the Tobacco Prevention and Education Program at 971.673.0984 or (TTY) 971.673.0987.