This is not intended to be argumentative with the poster who advises that you can say you prefer not to answer, but the truth of it is, from the medical personnel side of things, when we hear that or see it written on a form, we assume the person does indeed smoke, drink, or whatever else they are asked about because no one is ashamed or embarrassed say they don't and will look you right in the eye when they say so, so that really doesn't work well for 'ya.
One of the two MOST IMPORTANT THINGS to be concerned about when it comes to your privacy and correct information in ANY medical setting is the "Release of Information to Third Parties" form that you are asked to sign. THIS is what gives away all your privacy rights. Go ahead -- ask them who these "third parties" are. No one knows! Yet, you must sign it to get medical assistance. You just signed away your privacy as to whether you smoke and everything else you reveal to your physician or dentist about yourself and whatever they put in your file about you. Yeah, it's THAT bad.
And that leads me to tell you this: CHECK YOUR MEDICAL RECORDS TO BE SURE THEY ARE CORRECT!!! You have every right to your medical records. They may charge you a dollar or so to copy each page, but you REALLY need to check them periodically for correctness. Be sure your Past Medical History, Current Medical Problems, and Medications including dosage and how often you take them (every X hours or times a week) are correct.
I've also done medical transcription. Every time you see a physician they should dictate a report for the file on your visit. Some physicians dictate their reports individually after every office visit (when they are rushed) or they wait until after office hours (when they are tired). Some wait until the weekend to do them all at once (when they have to try to remember).
Sometimes they get the patients confused with one another or are so tired they say the wrong thing. It is part of a transcriptionist's job to be sure the reports are correct and we do this by comparing them with the last report done on a patient. We find mistakes and we have to point them out to the doctor.
Many doctors don't look at their reports. They dictate, send the dictation to a transcription service, and then rubber stamp their signature or sign by hand when the reports come back but they never read them for accuracy. They are too busy. So it's up to YOU to be sure they are right.
Now many physicians are entering the info themselves on a computer while you are there or they use speech-activated transcription programs which can make mistakes. Don't assume the docs take the time to proofread what these programs "type." One common error is "See Alice" instead of Cialis. Funny but luckily obvious. Other errors aren't so obvious. Your doc may know in his/her head all about you but if those records are ever used by another physician (let's say your doc is on vacation or you need to change to someone else), the new person won't know what's correct and what isn't. All they know is what's "in the record" unless you inform them. And THIS info is used by insurance companies as well so it needs to be right. Why? Read on:
A friend of mine had surgery for gallstones. His report came back stating he had a major heart problem! The transcription was done right there in the hospital where he had the surgery, not by somebody in another country (many transcriptions are done overseas by people who are not trained in medicine and don't speak English as a primary language). Having the gallbladder removed is common but having a chronic heart condition is life-threatening. There's a BIG difference when it comes to insurance and your future medical care.
So check your records often and if you don't understand what they say, you have every right to ask for an explanation. But you at least know your medical conditions and medications. These are of primary importance. Check and correct after every few visits to be sure all is right before errors may get passed on to some other person or entity.
Bet you feel like having a cig now, huh? Don't mean to scare you. I just want you and everyone else reading this to know the facts.