Appendix B: Data Source Descriptions

Consumer Expenditure Survey

The Consumer Expenditure Survey is conducted by the Bureau of Labor Statistics. The survey contains both a diary component and an interview component. Data presented in this chartbook on both out-of-pocket health care and housing expenditures are derived from the interview component only. The proportions shown are derived from sample data and are not weighted to reflect the entire population.

In the interview portion of the Consumer Expenditure Survey, respondents are interviewed once every three months for five consecutive quarters. Respondents report information on consumer unit 1 characteristics and expenditures during each interview. Income data are collected during the second and fifth interviews only.

The data presented are obtained from consumer units whose reference person 2 is at least 65 years old. From all consumer units of this type, complete income reporters 3 are selected. The data are then sorted by income, and grouped into income quintiles, with the first quintile containing the lowest reported incomes.4 Annual expenditures are estimated by “annualizing” quarterly estimates. (That is, quarterly estimates are multiplied by four.) The proportions of total out-of-pocket expenditures that are used for health care and housing are then calculated separately for each income group.

Due to small sample sizes of consumer units with a reference person age 65 or older, these data may have large standard errors relative to their means; caution should be exercised when analyzing these results.

Definitions:

For the purposes of this report, housing is defined as “basic housing” (i.e., shelter and utilities). Shelter includes payments for mortgage principal, interest and charges; property taxes; maintenance, repairs, insurance, and other expenses; and rent; rent as pay; and maintenance, insurance, and other expenses for renters. “Basic housing” is defined to include utilities because some renters have these costs included in their rent; furthermore, they are a cost that most consumer units incur to provide a tolerable living environment, whether it be for heating and cooling, cooking, or lighting. Other expenses that are included in the Consumer Expenditure Interview Survey definition of housing, such as furniture and appliances, are not included in the current definition, because they are not purchased frequently. This is especially true for older consumers.Health care expenditures include out-of-pocket expenditures for health insurance, medical services, and prescription drugs and medical supplies.

For more information, contact:
Geoffrey Paulin
CES Staff
Phone: (202) 691-5132
E-mail: cexinfo@bls.gov
Internet: http://www.bls.gov/cex/

1  This term is used to describe members of a household related by blood, marriage, adoption, or other legal arrangement; single persons who are living alone or sharing a household with others but who are financially independent; or two or more persons living together who share responsibility for at least two of three major types of expenses—food, housing, and other expenses. Students living in university-sponsored housing are also included in the sample as separate consumer units. For convenience, the term “household” may be substituted for “consumer unit.”

2  This is the first person mentioned when the respondent is asked to name the person or persons who own or rent the home in which the consumer unit resides.

3  In general, “complete” reporters of income are those families that provide a value for at least one major source of income, such as wages and salaries, self-employment income, and Social Security income. However, even “complete” reporters of income do not necessarily provide a full accounting of income from all sources.

4  It is important to note that income does not necessarily include all sources of taxable income; for example, capital gains are not collected as “income.” Similarly, other sources of revenue (such as sales of jewelry, art, furniture, or other similar property) are not included in the definition of income used by the Consumer Expenditure Interview Survey.

Continuing Survey of Food Intakes by Individuals

The Continuing Survey of Food Intakes by Individuals (CSFII) is designed to measure what Americans eat and drink. Uses of the survey include: monitoring the nutritional adequacy of American diets, measuring the impact of food fortification on nutrient intakes, developing

dietary guidance and related programs, estimating exposure of population groups to food contaminants, evaluating the nutritional impact of food assistance programs, and assessing the need for agricultural products. The 1994–96 CSFII sample consisted of individuals residing in households and included oversampling of the low-income population. In each of the three survey years, respondents were asked to provide, through in-person interviews, food intake data on two nonconsecutive days, with both days of intake collected by the 24-hour recall method.

This report uses CSFII data to calculate the Healthy Eating Index (HEI), a summary measure of dietary quality. The HEI consists of 10 components, each representing a different aspect of a healthful diet based on the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Food Guide Pyramid and the Dietary Guidelines for Americans. Components 1 to 5 measure the degree to which a person’s diet conforms to the Pyramid serving recommendations for the five major food groups: grains, vegetables, fruits, milk, and meat/meat alternatives. Components 6 and 7 measure fat and saturated fat consumption. Components 8 and 9 measure cholesterol and sodium intake, and component 10 measures the degree of variety in a person’s diet. High component scores indicate intakes close to recommended ranges or amounts; low component scores indicate less compliance with recommended ranges or amounts. Scores for each component are given equal weight and added to calculate an overall HEI score with a maximum value of 100. An HEI score above 80 implies a good diet, an HEI score between 51 and 80 implies a diet that needs improvement, and an HEI score below 51 implies a poor diet.

For more information on CSFII 1989–91, see: Tippett, K.S., Mickle, S.J., Goldman, J.D., et al. (1995). Food and Nutrient Intakes by Individuals in the United States, 1 day, 1989–91. U.S. Department of Agriculture, Agricultural Research Service, NFS Rep. No. 91-2.

For more information on CSFII 1994–96, see: Tippet, K.S., and Cypel, Y.S. (Eds.) (1998). Design and Operation: The Continuing Survey of Food Intakes by Individuals and the Diet and Health Knowledge Survey, 1994–96. U.S. Department of Agriculture, Agricultural Research Service, NFS Rep. No. 96-1.

For more information about CSFII, contact:
Sharon Mickle
Agricultural Research Service
Department of Agriculture
Phone: (301) 504-0341
E-mail: smickle@rbhnrc.usda.gov
Internet: http://www.barc.usda.gov/bhnrc/foodsurvey/home.htm

For more information about HEI, contact:
Nadine Sahyoun
Center for Nutrition Policy and Promotion
Department of Agriculture
Phone: (202) 606-4837
E-mail: nadine.sahyoun@usda.gov

Current Population Survey

The Current Population Survey (CPS) is a nationally representative sample survey of about 50,000 households conducted monthly for the Bureau of Labor Statistics by the U.S. Census Bureau.

The CPS core survey is the primary source of information on the employment characteristics of the civilian noninstitutional population age 16 and older, including estimates of unemployment released every month by the Bureau of Labor Statistics.

In 1994, the questionnaire for the CPS was redesigned, and the computer-assisted personal interviewing method was implemented. In addition, the 1990 census-based population controls, with adjustments for the estimated population undercount, were also introduced.

Monthly CPS supplements provide additional demographic and social data. The Annual Demographic Survey, or March CPS supplement, is the primary source of detailed information on income and work experience in the United States. The Annual Demographic Survey is used to generate the annual Population Profile of the United States, reports on geographical mobility and educational attainment, and detailed analyses of money income and poverty status.

For more information regarding the CPS, its sampling structure, and estimation methodology, see: Employment and Earnings 47 (1), 235-252. U.S. Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics. January 2000.

For more information, contact:
Division of Labor Force Statistics
Bureau of Labor Statistics
Department of Labor
Phone: (202) 691-6378
E-mail: cpsinfo@bls.gov
Internet: http://www.bls.census.gov/cps/cpsmain.htm

Health and Retirement Study

The Health and Retirement Study (HRS) is a national panel study being conducted by the University of Michigan Institute for Social Research under a cooperative agreement with the National Institute on Aging. The study had an initial sample in 1992 of over 12,600 persons from the 1931–1941 birth cohort and their spouses. The HRS was joined in 1993 by a companion study, Assets and Health Dynamics Among the Oldest Old (AHEAD), with a sample of 8,222 respondents born before 1924 who were age 70 or older and their spouses. In 1998, these two data collection efforts were combined into a single survey instrument and field period, and were expanded through the addition of baseline interviews with two new birth cohorts—the Children of the Depression Age (CODA—1924 to 1930) and the War Babies (WB—1942 to 1947). Plans call for adding a new 6-year cohort of Americans entering their 50s every 6 years. In 2004, baseline interviews will be conducted with the Early Boomer birth cohort (1948 to 1953). The combined studies, which are collectively called HRS, have become a “steady state” sample that is representative of the entire U.S. population over age 50. HRS will follow respondents longitudinally until they die. All cohorts will be followed with biennial interviews.

The HRS is intended to provide data for researchers, policy analysts, and program planners who are making major policy decisions that affect retirement, health insurance, saving, and economic well-being. The objectives of the study are: to explain the antecedents and consequences of retirement; examine the relationship between health, income, and wealth over time; examine life cycle patterns of wealth accumulation and consumption; monitor work disability; provide a rich source of interdisciplinary data, including linkages with administrative data; monitor transitions in physical, functional, and cognitive health in advanced old age; examine the relationship of late-life changes in physical and cognitive health to patterns of spending down assets and income flows; relate changes in health to economic resources and intergenerational transfers; and examine how the mix and distribution of economic, family and program resources affect key outcomes, including retirement, spending down assets, health declines and institutionalization.

For more information, contact:
Health and Retirement Study Staff
Phone: (734) 936-0314
E-mail: hrsquest@isr.umich.edu
Internet: http://www.umich.edu/~hrswww/

Medicare Current Beneficiary Survey

The Medicare Current Beneficiary Survey (MCBS) is a continuous, multipurpose survey of a representative sample of the Medicare population designed to aid the Health Care Financing Administration’s (HCFA) administration, monitoring and evaluation of the Medicare program. The MCBS collects information on: health care use, cost and sources of payment; health insurance coverage; household composition; sociodemographic characteristics; health status and physical functioning; income and assets; access to care; satisfaction with care; usual source of care, and how beneficiaries get information about Medicare.

Data from the MCBS enable HCFA to determine sources of payment for all medical services used by Medicare beneficiaries, including copayments, deductibles, and noncovered services; develop reliable and current information on the use and cost of services not covered by Medicare (such as prescription drugs and long-term care); ascertain all types of health insurance coverage and relate coverage to sources of payment; and monitor the financial effects of changes in the Medicare program. Additionally, the MCBS is the only source of multidimensional person-based information about the characteristics of the Medicare population and their access to and satisfaction with Medicare services and information about the Medicare program. The MCBS sample consists of Medicare enrollees whether in the community or in an institution.

The survey is conducted in three rounds per year, with each round being four months in length. MCBS has a multistage stratified random sample design and a rotating panel survey design. Each panel is followed for 12 interviews. In-person interviews are conducted using computer-assisted personal interviewing. Approximately 16,000 sample persons are interviewed in each round. However, because of the rotating panel design, only 12,000 sample persons receive all three interviews in a given calendar year.

Information collected in the survey is combined with information from HCFA’s administrative data files and made available through public use data files. The Access to Care data file combines survey responses from the fall round of the MCBS with complete calendar year Medicare claims data; it does not contain health care use and cost data reported by the respondents. Access to Care data files are available within a year of the close of the subject calendar year. The complete medical use, cost, and source of payment data file takes twice as long to produce because it requires complex editing and imputation activities which are built upon an event-level match of survey-based information with Medicare claims and administrative data.

For more information, contact:
For Public Use Files: (410) 786-3691
For Medicare data questions: (410) 786-3689
E-mail: mcbs@hcfa.gov
Internet: http://www.hcfa.gov/mcbs/Default.asp or http://www.hcfa.gov/stats/stats.htm

National Crime Victimization Survey

 The National Crime Victimization Survey (NCVS) is the nation’s primary source of information on criminal victimization. Each year data are collected by the U.S. Census Bureau for the Bureau of Justice Statistics, Department of Justice, from a nationally representative sample of about 43,000 households comprising more than 80,000 persons age 12 or older on the frequency, characteristics, and consequences of criminal victimization in the United States. The survey measures rape, sexual assault, robbery, simple and aggregated assault, personal larceny, property theft, household burglary, and motor vehicle theft for the population as a whole, as well as for demographic groups in the population including the population age 65 or older, men and women, members of various racial groups, and persons living in cities, suburbs and rural areas. Victims are also asked characteristics of the crimes including whether they reported the incident to the police and, in instances of personal violent crimes, the characteristics of the perpetrator. The NCVS provides the largest national forum for victims to describe the impact of crime and the characteristics of violent offenders. It has been ongoing since 1973 and was redesigned in 1992.

A complete description of the survey methodology, including changes that were made when the survey was redesigned, can be found in Criminal Victimization in the United States, 1993, NCJ-151657.

For more information, contact:
Patsy Klaus Bureau of Justice Statistics
Department of Justice
Phone: (202) 307-0776
E-mail: klausp@ojp.usdoj.gov

National Health Interview Survey

 The National Health Interview Survey (NHIS) is a continuing nationwide sample survey of the civilian noninstitutional population conducted by the National Center for Health Statistics. Each week a probability sample of the civilian noninstitutional population of the United States is interviewed by personnel of the U.S. Census Bureau. Data are collected through personal household interviews. Interviewers obtain information on personal and demographic characteristics, including race and ethnicity, by self-reporting or as reported by a household informant. Data about illnesses, injuries, impairments, chronic and acute conditions, activity limitation, utilization of health services, and other health topics are also collected.

The interview is comprised of a core set of questions, which are repeated each year, and a set of topical supplements, which change from year to year. Each year, the survey is reviewed and special topics are added or deleted. For most health topics, the survey collects data over an entire year. The sample includes an oversampling of black and Hispanic persons. The response rate for the ongoing part of the survey has been between 94 and 98 percent over the years. In 1995, interviewers collected information for the core questionnaire on 102,467 persons, including 11,955 persons age 65 or older.

Descriptions of the survey design, the methods used in estimation, and the general qualifications of the data are presented in:

Massey, J.T., Moore, T.F., Parsons, V.L., and Tadros, W. (1989). Design and estimation for the National Health Interview Survey, 1985-1994. Vital and Health Statistics, 2 (110). Hyattsville, MD: National Center for Health Statistics.

Benson, V. and Marano, M. (1998). Current estimates from the National Health Interview Survey, 1995., 10 (199). Hyattsville, MD: National Center for Health Statistics.

For more information, contact:
Ellen Kramarow
Office of Analysis, Epidemiology, and Health Promotion
National Center for Health Statistics
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
Department of Health and Human Services Phone: (301) 458-4325
E-mail: ebk4@cdc.gov
Internet: http://www.cdc.gov/nchs/nhis.htm

National Long Term Care Survey

The 1982, 1984, 1989, and 1994 National Long Term Care Surveys (NLTCS) are nationally representative surveys of Medicare beneficiaries age 65 or older with chronic functional disabilities. The samples drawn from the Medicare beneficiary enrollment files are nationally representative of both community and institutional residents. As sample persons are followed through the Medicare record system, virtually 100 percent of cases can be longitudinally tracked so that declines as well as improvements in health status may be identified, as well as the exact dates of death. NLTCS sample persons are followed until death and are permanently and continuously linked to the Medicare record system from which they are drawn. Linkage to the Medicare Part A and B service records extend from 1982 through 1995, so that detailed Medicare expenditures and types of service use may be studied.

Through the careful application of methods to reduce nonsampling error, the surveys provide nationally representative data on: the prevalence and patterns of functional limitations, both physical and cognitive; longitudinal and cohort patterns of change in functional limitation and mortality over 12 years; medical conditions and recent medical problems; health care services used; the kind and amount of formal and informal services received by impaired individuals and how it is paid for; demographic and economic characteristics such as age, race, sex, marital status, education and income and assets; out-of-pocket expenditures for health care services and other sources of payment; and housing and neighborhood characteristics.

For more information, contact:
Larry C. Corder Center for Demographic Studies
Duke University
Phone: (919) 684-6126
Internet: http://www.cds.duke.edu/

National Nursing Home Survey

The National Nursing Home Survey (NNHS) is a continuing series of national sample surveys of nursing homes, their residents, and their staff. Five nursing home surveys have been conducted: 1973 to 1974, 1977, 1985, 1995, and 1997.

The survey collects information on nursing homes, their residents, discharges, and staff. Nursing homes are defined as facilities with three or more beds that routinely provide nursing care services. In 1973-74, 1985, 1995, and 1997, the survey excluded personal care or domiciliary care homes. Facilities may be certified by Medicare or Medicaid, or not certified but licensed by the state as a nursing home. These facilities may be freestanding or nursing care units of hospitals, retirements centers, or similar institutions where the unit maintained financial and resident records separate from those of the larger institutions. The survey is based on self-administered questionnaires and interviews with administrators and staff in a sample of about 1,500 facilities.

The National Nursing Home Survey provides information on nursing homes from two perspectives— that of the provider of services and that of the recipient. Data about the facilities include characteristics such as size, ownership, Medicare/Medicaid certification, occupancy rate, days of care provided, and expenses. For recipients, data are obtained on demographic characteristics, health status, and services received. Resident data are provided by a nurse familiar with the care provided to the resident. The nurse relies on the medical record and personal knowledge of the resident.

For more information on the 1985 NNHS, see: Hing, E., Sekscenski E, Strahan, G. (1985). The National Nursing Home Survey: 1985 summary for the United States. National Center for Health Statistics. Vital Health Statistics, 13(97).

For more information on the 1995 NNHS, see: Strahan, G. (1997). An overview of nursing homes and their current residents: Data from the 1995 National Nursing Home Survey. Advance data from vital and health statistics; no 280. Hyattsville, Maryland: National Center for Health Statistics.

For more information on the 1997 NNHS, see: Gabrel, C. (2000). An overview of nursing home facilities: Data from the 1997 National Nursing Home Survey. National Center for Health Statistics. Advance data from Vital and Health Statistics; no. 311. Hyattsville, Maryland: National Center for Health Statistics.

For more information, contact:
Genevieve Strahan
Division of Health Care Statistics
National Center for Health Statistics
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
Department of Health and Human Services\ Phone: (301) 458-4747
E-mail: gws3@cdc.gov 
Internet: http://www.cdc.gov/nchs/about/major/nnhsd/nnhsd.htm

National Vital Statistics System

Through the National Vital Statistics System, the National Center for Health Statistics (NCHS) collects and publishes data on births, deaths, marriages, and divorces in the United States. The Division of Vital Statistics obtains information on births and deaths from the registration offices of all states, New York City, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, the U.S. Virgin Islands, and Guam. Geographic coverage for births and deaths has been complete since 1933. Demographic information on the death certificate is provided by the funeral director based on information supplied by an informant. Medical certification of cause of death is provided by a physician, medical examiner, or coroner.

U.S. Standard Certificates of Death are revised periodically, allowing careful evaluation of each item and addition, modification, and deletion of items. Since 1989, revised standard certificates have included items on educational attainment and Hispanic origin of decedents as well as improvements in the medical certification of cause of death. Standard certificates recommended by NCHS are modified in each registration area to serve the area’s needs. However, most certificates conform closely in content and arrangement to the standard certificate, and all certificates contain a minimum data set specified by NCHS.

Death rates by race and Hispanic origin are based on information from death certificates (numerators of the rates) and on population estimates from the U.S. Census Bureau (denominators of the rates). Race and Hispanic origin are reported by the funeral director as provided by an informant, often the surviving next of kin, or, in the absence of an informant, on the basis of observation. Race and Hispanic origin data from the census are self-reported by the respondent. To the extent that race and Hispanic origin classification is inconsistent between these two data sources, death rates will be biased. Studies have shown that persons self-reported as American Indian and Alaska Native, Asian and Pacific Islander, or Hispanic on census and survey records may sometimes be reported as white or non-Hispanic on the death certificate, resulting in an underestimation of deaths and death rates for the American Indian and Alaska Native, Asian and Pacific Islander, and Hispanic groups. Bias also results from undercounts of some population groups in the census, particularly young black and white males and older persons, resulting in an overestimation of death rates. The net effects of misclassification and under coverage result in overstated death rates for the white population and black population estimated to be 1 percent and 5 percent, respectively; and understated death rates for other population groups estimated as follows: American Indian and Alaska Natives, 21 percent; Asian and Pacific Islanders, 11 percent; and Hispanics, 2 percent.

For more information, see: Rosenberg, H.M., Maurer, J.D., Sorlie, P.D., Johnson, N.J., et al. (1999). Quality of death rates by race and Hispanic origin: A summary of current research, 1999. National Center for Health Statistics. Vital Health Statistics, 2 (128).

For more information on mortality data, see: National Center for Health Statistics. (1996). Technical Appendix, Vital Statistics of the United States, 1992, Vol. II, Mortality, Part A, DHHS Pub. No. (PHS) 96-1101, Public Health Service. Washington. U.S. Government Printing Office, or visit the NCHS home page at www.cdc.gov/nchs/.

For more information, contact:
Mortality Statistics Branch
Division of Vital Statistics
National Center for Health Statistics
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
Department of Health and Human Services
Phone: (301) 458-4666
Internet: http://www.cdc.gov/nchs/nvss.htm

Panel Study of Income Dynamics

The Panel Study of Income Dynamics is a longitudinal study of a representative sample of U.S. individuals (men, women, and children) and the family units in which they reside. Starting with a national sample of 5,000 U.S. households in 1968, the PSID has reinterviewed individuals from those households every year from 1968 to 1997 and will interview them every other year after 1999, whether or not they are living in the same dwelling or with the same people. Adults have been followed as they have grown older, and children have been observed as they advance through childhood and into adulthood, forming family units of their own. Information about the original 1968 sample individuals and their current co-residents (spouses, cohabitors, children, and anyone else living with them) is collected each year. In 1990, a representative national sample of 2,000 Hispanic households, differentially sampled to provide adequate numbers of Puerto Rican, Mexican-American, and Cuban-Americans, was added to the PSID database. With low attrition rates and successful recontacts, the sample size has grown to almost 8,700 in 1995. PSID data can be used for cross-sectional, longitudinal, and intergenerational analyses and for studying both individuals and families.

The central focus of the data has been economic and demographic, with substantial detail on income sources and amounts, employment, family composition changes, and residential location. Based on findings in the early years, the PSID expanded to its present focus on family structure and dynamics as well as income, wealth, and expenditures. Wealth and health are other important contributors to individual and family well-being that have been the focus of the PSID in recent years.

The PSID wealth modules measure net equity in homes and nonhousing assets divided into six categories: other real estate and vehicles; farm or business ownership; stocks, mutual funds, investment trusts, and stocks held in IRAs; checking and savings accounts, CDs, treasury bills, savings bonds, and liquid assets in IRAs; bonds, trusts, life insurance, and other assets; and other debts. The PSID measure of wealth excludes private pensions and rights to future Social Security payments.

For information, contact:
Frank Stafford
PSID Project Director Survey Research Center
Institute for Social Research
University of Michigan
Phone: (734) 763-5166
E-mail: Fstaffor@isr.umich.edu or psidhelp@isr.umich.edu
Internet: http://www.isr.umich.edu/src/psid/

Population Projections

National population projections begin with recent population estimates by age, race, and Hispanic origin. These statistics are then projected forward to 2100, based on assumptions about fertility, mortality, and international migration. Low-, middle-, and high-growth assumptions are made for each of these components. The current middle-series assumptions are:

For more information, see: Hollmann, F., Mulder, T.J., and Kallan, J.E., (January 2000). Methodology and Assumptions for the Population Projections of the United States: 1999 to 2100. Population Division Working Paper No. 38, U.S. Census Bureau.

For information on the methodology and assumptions behind the state population projections see: Campbell, P.R., (1996). Population Projections for States by Age, Sex, Race, and Hispanic Origin: 1995 to 2025, U.S. Bureau of the Census, Population Division, PPL-47.

For more information, contact:
Frederick Hollmann
Population Projections Branch
Population Division
U.S. Census Bureau
Phone: (301)-457-2428
E-mail: Frederick.W.Hollmann@ccmail.census.gov
Internet: http://www.census.gov

Supplement on Aging

The Supplement on Aging (SOA), conducted by NCHS with the support of the National Institute on Aging, is a survey of noninstitutional persons age 70 or older who were interviewed originally as part of the 1984 core National Health Interview Survey (NHIS). The sample size is 7,527, and the sample is representative of the 1984 U.S. population age 70 and older. In addition, the SOA was administered to 8,621 sample persons ages 55 to 69 to obtain information about persons just prior to their retirement. The SOA includes measures of health and functioning, chronic conditions, housing and long term care, family structure and living arrangements, and social activities. It serves as the baseline for the Longitudinal Study on Aging (LSOA) which followed the original 1984 cohort through subsequent interviews in 1986, 1988, and 1990 and is continuing with passive mortality follow-up.

Descriptions of the survey design, the methods used in estimation, and the general qualifications of the data are presented in:  Fitti, J.E. and Kovar, M.G. (1987). The Supplement on Aging to the 1984 National Health Interview Survey. Vital and Health Statistics, 1 (21). Hyattsville, MD: National Center for Health Statistics.

For more information, contact:
Julie Dawson Weeks
Office of Analysis, Epidemiology, and Health Promotion
National Center for Health Statistics
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
Department of Health and Human Services
Phone: (301) 458-4562
E-mail: jad3@cdc.gov
Internet: http://www.cdc.gov/nchs/about/otheract/aging/lsoa.htm

Second Supplement on Aging

The Second Supplement on Aging (SOA II), conducted by NCHS with the support of the National Institute on Aging, is a survey of noninstitutional persons age 70 or older who were interviewed originally as part of the 1994 core National Health Interview Survey (NHIS). The sample size is 9,447. The SOA II includes measures of health and functioning, chronic conditions, use of assistive devices, housing and long term care, and social activities. It was designed to replicate the 1984 NHIS Supplement on Aging to examine whether changes have occurred in the health and functioning of the older population between the mid-1980s and the mid-1990s. The 1984 Supplement on Aging served as the baseline for the Longitudinal Study on Aging (LSOA) which followed the original 1984 cohort through subsequent interviews in 1986, 1988, and 1990 and is continuing with passive mortality follow-up. The SOA II serves as the baseline for the Second Longitudinal Study on Aging (LSOA II).

The SOA II was implemented as part of the National Health Interview Survey on Disability (NHIS-D), which was designed in order to understand disability, estimate the prevalence of certain conditions, and provide baseline statistics on the effects of disabilities. The NHIS-D was conducted in two phases. Phase 1 of the NHIS-D collected information from the household respondent at the time of the 1994 NHIS core interview and was used as a screening instrument for Phase 2 of the NHIS-D. The screening criteria were broadly defined, and more than 50 percent of persons age 70 or older were included in the Phase 2 NHIS-D interviews. Persons age 70 or older who were not included in Phase 2 NHIS-D received the SOA II survey instrument, which was a subset of questions from the NHIS-D.

While the 1994 NHIS core and NHIS-D Phase 1 interviews took place in 1994, Phase 2 of the NHIS-D was conducted as a follow-up survey, 7 to 17 months after the core interviews. In the calculation of weights, therefore, the post-stratification adjustment was based on the population control counts from July 1, 1995, roughly the midpoint of the Phase 2 survey period. As a result, the SOA II sample, based on all 1994 NHIS core participants age 70 or older at the time of the Phase 2 NHIS-D interviews, is representative of the 1995 noninstitutional population age 70 and older.

For more information, contact:
Julie Dawson Weeks
Office of Analysis, Epidemiology, and Health Promotion
National Center for Health Statistics
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
Department of Health and Human Services
Phone: (301) 458-4562
E-mail: jad3@cdc.gov
Internet: http://www.cdc.gov/nchs/about/otheract/aging/lsoa.htm

1963 Survey of the Aged

The major purpose of the 1963 Survey of the Aged was to measure the economic and social situations of a representative sample of all persons age 62 or older in the United States in 1963 in order to serve the detailed information needs of the Social Security Administration. The survey included a wide range of questions on health insurance, medical care costs, income, assets and liabilities, labor force participation and work experience, housing and food expenses, and living arrangements.

The sample consisted of a representative subsample (one-half) of the Current Population Survey (CPS) sample and the full Quarterly Household Survey. Income was measured using answers to 17 questions about specific sources. Results from this survey have been combined with results from the CPS from 1971 to the present in an income time-series produced by the Social Security Administration.

For more information, contact:
Susan Grad
Office of Research, Evaluation, and Statistics
Social Security Administration
Phone: (202) 358-6220
E-mail: susan.grad@ssa.gov
Internet: http://www.ssa.gov

1968 of Demographic and Economic Characteristics of the Aged Survey

The 1968 Survey of Demographic and Economic Characteristics of the Aged was conducted by the Social Security Administration to provide continuing information on the socioeconomic status of the older population for program evaluation. Major issues addressed by the study include the adequacy of Old-Age, Survivors, Disability, and Health Insurance (OASDHI) benefit levels, the impact of certain Social Security provisions on the incomes of the older population, and the extent to which other sources of income are received by older Americans.

Data for the 1968 Survey were obtained as a supplement to the Current Medicare Survey, which yields current estimates of health care services used and charges incurred by persons covered by the hospital insurance and supplemental medical insurance programs. Supplemental questions covered work experience, household relationships, income, and assets. Income was measured using answers to 17 questions about specific sources. Results from this survey have been combined with results from the Current Population Survey from 1971 to the present in an income time-series produced by the Social Security Administration.

For more information, contact:
Susan Grad
Office of Research, Evaluation, and Statistics
Social Security Administration
Phone: (202) 358-6220
E-mail: susan.grad@ssa.gov
Internet: http://www.ssa.gov

Uniform Crime Reports

The Federal Bureau of Investigation’s (FBI) Uniform Crime Reports (UCR) Program, which began in 1929, collects information on the following crimes reported to law enforcement authorities: homicide, forcible rape, robbery, aggravated assault, burglary, larceny-theft, motor vehicle theft, and arson. Arrests are reported for 21 additional crime categories. There may be slight differences between these estimates and those published annually by the FBI, since the data files are updated on a periodic basis as additional data become available.

The UCR data are compiled from monthly law enforcement reports or individual crime incident records transmitted directly to the FBI or to centralized state agencies that then report to the FBI. In 1997, law enforcement agencies active in the UCR Program represented approximately 254 million United States inhabitants—95 percent of the total population. The UCR Program provides crime counts for the nation as a whole, as well as for regions, states, counties, cities, and towns. This permits studies among neighboring jurisdictions and among those with similar populations and other common characteristics.

UCR findings for each calendar year are published in a preliminary release in the spring, followed by a detailed annual report, Crime in the United States, issued the following calendar year. In addition to crime counts and trends, this report includes data on crimes cleared, persons arrested (age, sex, and race), law enforcement personnel (including the number of sworn officers killed or assaulted), and the characteristics of homicides (including age, sex, and race of victims and offenders, victim-offender relationships, weapons used, and circumstances surrounding the homicides). Other special reports are also available from the UCR Program.

For more information, contact:
Uniform Crime Reports
Programs Support Section
Criminal Justice Information Services Division
Federal Bureau of Investigation
1000 Custer Hollow Road
Clarksburg, West Virginia 26306
Phone: (304) 625-4995
Internet: http://www.fbi.gov/ucr.htm

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Last Modified: 5/9/2008 12:39:55 PM
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