Table 1. Characteristics of Massachusetts Adults and Workers^a Aged 40 to 70, by COPD Status^b, Massachusetts BRFSS, 2011–2017.

Characteristicb	With COPD		Without COPD		P Valuee
	No. Respondingc	% (95% CI)d	No. Respondingc	% (95% CI)d
All Adults, N = 56,052
Employment status	4,623	NA	51,429	NA	<.001
Unable to work		33.3 (31.0–35.6)		7.4 (7.0–7.7)
Retired		18.2 (16.5–19.9)		12.2 (11.8–12.6)
Out of work for ≥ 1 year		6.2 (4.8–7.5)		3.8 (3.6–4.1)
Other (Student, homemaker)		2.9 (2.1–3.8)		4.6 (4.3–4.9)
Employed, past yeara		39.4 (37.0–41.8)		72.1 (71.5–72.6)
Workers, n = 35,906
Age, y	1,514	NA	34,392	NA	<.001
40–50		28.5 (24.8–32.2)		45.2 (44.5–46.0)
51–60		44.9 (40.9–48.9)		38.7 (37.9–39.4)
61–70		26.6 (23.4–29.9)		16.1 (15.6–16.6)
Female	1,514	58.0 (54.0–62.0)	34,392	48.6 (47.9–49.4)	<.001
Race/ethnicity	1,491	NA	33,905	NA	.07
White, non-Hispanic		87.2 (84.0–90.4)		82.6 (81.9–83.3)
Hispanic		4.1 (2.4–5.7)		6.5 (6.0–6.9)
Black, non-Hispanic		3.5 (1.6–5.5)		5.4 (5.0–5.7)
Other, non-Hispanic		5.2 (2.9–7.5)		5.6 (5.2–6.1)
Education	1,509	NA	34,310	NA	<.001
≤High school graduate		48.0 (44.0–52.1)		29.3 (28.5–30.1)
>High school graduate		52.0 (47.9–56.0)		70.7 (69.9–71.5)
Asthma
Ever diagnosed with asthmaf	1,503	45.2 (41.2–49.1)	34,326	11.5 (11.0–12.0)	<.001
Current asthmag	1,491	38.0 (34.1–41.9)	34,233	8.1 (7.6–8.5)	<.001
Physical health
Fair or poorh	1,513	27.9 (24.5–31.4)	34,338	7.0 (6.6–7.4)	<.001
Poor, ≥15 days past monthi	1,486	20.6 (17.5–23.8)	33,992	5.5 (5.2–5.9)	<.001
Poor mental health, ≥15 days past monthj	1,483	19.9 (16.7–23.2)	33,913	6.8 (6.4–7.2)	<.001
Influenza vaccination, past year	1,412	48.4 (44.2–52.5)	31,911	43.9 (43.1–44.7)	.04
Smoking statusk	1,476	NA	33,244	NA	<.001
Current		39.3 (35.3–43.3)		12.4 (11.9–13.0)
Former		36.7 (32.9–40.4)		30.3 (29.5–31.0)
Never		24.0 (20.6–27.5)		57.3 (56.5–58.1)
Secondhand smoke exposure at work, past weekl	971	18.1 (13.9–22.4)	22,942	10.0 (9.3–10.7)	<.001
Among nonsmokers	606	15.8 (10.9–20.6)	20,193	8.8 (8.1–9.4)	<.001

Abbreviations: BRFSS, Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System; COPD, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease; NA, not applicable.

^a Employed for wages, self-employed, or out of work for less than 1 year.

^b “Yes” (with COPD) or “no” (without COPD) response to the question: “Has a doctor, nurse, or other health professional ever told you that you had chronic obstructive pulmonary disease or COPD, emphysema, or chronic bronchitis?”

^c Unweighted number of respondents who answered the corresponding question(s). The numbers might not total the full study group because not all respondents answered each question.

^d Weighted percentage. Percentages may not add to 100% because of rounding.

^e P value from χ² test of independence comparing weighted distributions between those with and without COPD.

^f “Yes” response to the question: “Have you ever been told by a doctor or other health professional that you have asthma?”

^g “Yes” responses to the questions: “Have you ever been told by a doctor or other health professional that you have asthma?” and “Do you still have asthma?”

^h Responded “fair” or “poor” when asked to describe his/her overall health as excellent, very good, good, fair, or poor.

ⁱ Responded 15 days or more when asked the number days in the past month that his/her physical health, which includes physical illness and injury, had not been good.

^j Responded 15 days or more when asked the number of days in the past month that his/her mental health, which includes stress, depression, and problems with emotions, had not been good.

^k Current = smoked at least 100 cigarettes in his/her lifetime and currently smokes either some days or every day; former = smoked at least 100 cigarettes in his/her lifetime but no longer smokes.

^l Responded 1 or more hours when asked the number of hours exposed to other people’s tobacco smoke when at work in the past 7 days.