New Wireless Substitution Estimates

Preliminary results from the January-June 2009 National Health Interview Survey (NHIS) indicate that the number of American homes with only wireless telephones continues to grow. More than one of every five American homes (22.7%) had only wireless telephones during the first half of 2009 -- an increase of 2.5 percentage points since the second half of 2008. In addition, one of every seven American homes (14.7%) had a landline yet received all or almost all calls on wireless telephones. This report presents the most up-to-date estimates available from the federal government concerning the size and characteristics of these populations. Nearly half of adults aged 25-29 years (45.8%) lived in households with only wireless telephones. More than one-third of adults aged 18-24 (37.6%) and approximately one-third of adults aged 30-34 (33.5%) lived in households with only wireless telephones. Hispanic adults (28.2%) were more likely than non-Hispanic white adults (19.7%) or non-Hispanic black adults (21.3%) to be living in households with only wireless telephones. Adults living in the South (25.0%) and Midwest (21.9%) were more likely than adults living in the Northeast (14.6%) to be living in households with only wireless telephones. Adults living in poverty (33.0%) and adults living near poverty (26.5%) were more likely than higher income adults (18.9%) to be living in households with only wireless telephones.