Additional Data Sets of Interest

National Employer Health Insurance Survey (NEHIS)

Data from the National Employer Health Insurance Survey (NEHIS) are available to researchers through the NCHS Research Data Center (RDC). Due to confidentiality constraints, NCHS does not release a public use version of the NEHIS files. The NEHIS was developed to produce estimates on employer-sponsored health insurance data in the United States. It was the first federal survey to represent all employers in the United States by state and obtain information on all plans offered to employees by their employers. The survey data provides a benchmark for analyzing developments in the health insurance market in conjunction with more recent surveys. The NEHIS was a national probability sample survey of business establishments (specific locations), governments, and self-employed individuals with no employees and no other locations. The survey also included a sample of health insurance plans offered by employers. Data were collected from approximately 39,000 employers in all 50 states and the District of Columbia. Information on health insurance plans was collected from nearly 47,000 health plans. The overall response rate for the survey was 70 percent. The survey was designed to produce state and national estimates. Data collected in the survey provide baseline data by state on various aspects of employer-sponsored health insurance, including employees eligible for coverage and their take-up rate, type and number of plans offered to employees, as well as detailed characteristics of plans offered (monthly premiums, employer and employee contributions to premiums, deductibles, coinsurance, and covered services).

The documentation and survey instrument for the 1994 NEHIS may be found on the following web site: http://www.cdc.gov/nchs/datawh/ftpserv/ftpdata/ftpdata.htm.

Researchers wishing to use the data must submit a research proposal to be reviewed and approved by a committee. Their judgment is based upon the availability of Research Data Center (RDC) resources, consistency with the mission of NCHS, and the feasibility of the project. Two access methods are available to researchers: on-site and remote. Regardless of the option chosen, each has an associated cost, which includes both capital and labor expenses involved in setting up and monitoring each project. In general, cost for on-site researchers is $1,000 per week. Cost for remote access for any one data set is $500 per month. File construction and setup cost is $500 per day of effort. Further information about the RDC may be found by accessing its web site at: www.cdc.gov/nchs/r&d/rdc.htm File documentation will be sent to prospective researchers upon request.

All requests for file documentation should be addressed to: Adonikka Deare Development and Analysis Group 6525 Belcrest Road, Room 952 Hyattsville, MD 20782 Email: AKD7@CDC.GOV