MEPS Overview

The purpose of this Institute is to facilitate the use of the Medical Expenditure Panel Survey (MEPS) public use data files by the health services research community. To meet this objective participants are provided with a general overview of the MEPS, a description of available data files, information about on-line data tools, some examples of the type of research projects the MEPS data can support, and information on constructing analytic data files. Major changes have taken place in the Nation's health care delivery system over the last decade. The most notable is the rapid expansion of managed care arrangements such as health maintenance organizations, preferred provider organizations, and other provider networks that seek to minimize increases in health care costs. The MEPS is a vital national data resource designed to continually provide health service researchers, policymakers, health care administrators, businesses, and others with timely, comprehensive information about health care use and costs in the United States. Newly released MEPS public use files provide analysts with opportunities to create unique analytic files for policy relevant analysis in the field of health services research, such as access to care and health disparities. In order to capture the unparalleled scope and detail of the MEPS, analysts need to understand the complexities of MEPS data files and data file linkages. This workshop will provide the knowledge necessary to formulate research plans utilizing the various MEPS files and linkage capabilities.