BRFSS Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
With technical and methodological assistance from CDC, state health departments use in-house interviewers or contract with telephone call centers or universities to administer the BRFSS surveys continuously through the year. The states use a standardized core questionnaire, optional modules, and state-added questions. The survey is conducted using Random Digit Dialing (RDD) techniques on both landlines and cell phones.
For more information about survey methodology and how it was updated in 2011 to permit use of cell phones for data collection, see Annual Survey Data.
Many states include state-added questions at their own expense. Because these questions are not funded by the CDC and are not part of the official BRFSS questionnaire, they are not included on the BRFSS Web site. However, there is a list of state-added question topics available on the BRFSS Questionnaires page.
For information on state-added questions, contact the BRFSS State Coordinatorsfor a specific state.
Generally, data and materials produced by federal agencies are in the public domain and may be reproduced without permission. However, we do ask that any published material derived from the data acknowledge CDC’s BRFSS as the original source.
Suggested Citation for Survey Questions:
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System Survey Questionnaire. Atlanta, Georgia: U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, [appropriate year].
Suggested Citation for Online BRFSS Database:
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System Survey Data. Atlanta, Georgia: U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, [appropriate year].
For more information on citations and keywords, visit http://www.cdc.gov/brfss/questionnaires/.
Beginning with the 2011 dataset, raking succeeded post stratification as the BRFSS statistical weighting method. As noted in the previous paragraph, age, sex, categories of ethnicity, geographic regions within states, marital status, education level, home ownership and type of phone ownership are currently used to weight BRFSS data.
Yes. Several questionnaires included four questions about health insurance, regular care provider, and last health checkup. Prevalence data by state can be sorted by race, gender, age, income, or education by using the “grouping” menu at the top right of the data page.
Also, in administering the 2013 BRFSS survey, states and territories will have the option to apply for funding to help them add a series of additional questions about health care access and use.