Comparison of phone and online enrollees in NYC's annual large-scale Nicotine Replacement Therapy giveaway program

Background: The New York City (NYC) Department of Health and Mental Hygiene has offered nicotine replacement therapy (NRT) to NYC smokers through an annual time-limited giveaway, enrolling 250,000 smokers since 2003. Starting in 2010, in addition to enrolling by phone, smokers were able to enroll online.

Program Description: In 2010, the giveaway was conducted in collaboration with 3-1-1, NYC's non-emergency information line, and was promoted by a hard-hitting, anti-smoking media campaign. All giveaway applicants completed a phone-based or online survey that assessed demographics, smoking behaviors and eligibility for receiving NRT. Enrollees were mailed NRT and educational materials and received a counseling call post-enrollment.

Results: Over 40,000 smokers enrolled during the 16-day 2010 program, with an average of 2,500 enrollees per day, the highest ever for this program. About half (55%) enrolled by phone and 45% enrolled online. Compared to phone enrollees, online enrollees were more likely to be: ages 25-44 (51% vs. 33%), white (53% vs. 33%), and college graduates (35% vs. 18%). Phone enrollees were more likely to be ages 45-64 (55% vs. 40%), black (32% vs. 17%), and have less than a high school education (22% vs. 8%).

Conclusions: The addition of the online enrollment option contributed to the program's ability to enroll a larger number of smokers, and new populations of smokers that had not previously applied by phone. As online smoking cessation tools become increasingly popular, phone-based options should continue to be made available. This NRT giveaway model may be generalizable to other large urban areas.