U.S. Health Surveys Microdata for Population Health Research

Summary This proposal seeks continued funding to expand and enhance the IPUMS Health Surveys Project. IPUMS Health Surveys provides streamlined access to core U.S. survey data on population health through two integrated databases: the National Health Interview Survey (IPUMS NHIS) and the Medical Expenditure Panel Survey Household Component (IPUMS MEPS). The NHIS is the leading source of information on U.S. health, health disparities, and the social determinants of health; the MEPS is the primary source of information on national trends and correlates in health care spending and health systems change. The proposed project will further improve this crucial resource for pathbreaking research in four ways: (1) Expand the database. We will integrate data and documentation from five new years of NHIS (2024-2028) and MEPS (2023-2027), nearly doubling the number of MEPS variables we offer. (2) Lower the barriers to cutting-edge research. We will enable rigorous and reproducible research by creating several complex variables critical for answering urgent population health questions, including (a) the addition of MEPS family interrelationship variables to allow users to easily attach information across records (e.g., parent to child, spouse to spouse); (b) harmonization of NHIS occupation and industry information to support research on occupational health; (c) creating summary measures of health insurance coverage instability over the course of the full MEPS panel; (d) bridging the substantial break between ICD-9 and ICD-10 condition codes and creating simplified, policy-relevant categories to support analyses of condition-specific health care expenditures using MEPS; (e) creating simplified MEPS prescribed medicines variables so users can quickly identify broad categories of policy-relevant variables (e.g., generics, opioids); and (f) improving the prescription medication data. (3) Enhance data access. We will enhance data access tools in five ways: (a) enabling researchers to incorporate additional information (e.g., reason for visit, type of medical provider seen) in the variables created through the MEPS variable construction system; (b) developing the capability for users to easily create and download custom MEPS variables that summarize the complex prescribed medicines data; (c) allowing extracts through the data access system with person-level data attached to event- and condition-level records; (d) enabling analysis of customized datasets using our online data analysis system; and (e) further simplifying access to user-defined summary variables by making them accessible through our data extract Application Programming Interface (API). (4) Disseminate data to a broad, diverse spectrum of users. We will engage in user support, training, and outreach activities to attract new users and support current users. Activities will include conference exhibits, presentations, introductory workshops, virtual office hours, timely answers to user queries, and webinars. We will also offer a three-day, in-person MEPS training workshop geared towards early-career scholars and scholars from historically underrepresented backgrounds.