Harmonized Federal, State, and Local Surveys Would Support NIH Research Mission

In 1999, NCI funded the California Health Interview Survey (CHIS) to obtain estimates on small geographic areas and racial and ethnic populations. CHIS was modeled after the National Health Interview Survey and could be compared to it.

After only a few rounds of data collection, CHIS had clearly demonstrated its value to the research community, policymakers, and advocates. In addition, survey leaders in states outside California had expressed interest in conducting their own surveys modeled after CHIS. Annually since 2006, NCI and UCLA have co-sponsored a breakfast session at the APHA meeting to explore these intentions more systematically. The number of participants has increased every year since.

In 2008, several NIH Institutes and Offices co-funded a contract with UCLA to systematically inventory statewide local health surveys across the US and to interview selected champions of innovative state health surveys. The study identified states collecting statewide local data consistent with current best practices and positioned to work collaboratively to harmonize population-based health surveys.

The competitive funding process could be used to further explore how to collect data that accurately represent small areas and populations, how to use these data to identify disparities and other public health issues, and how to innovate local health surveys while harmonizing them with national health data. Long-term, NIH seeks high-quality local surveys that can serve as a platform for additional data collection and be linked to clinical and environmental data while promoting a cycle of innovation, identification of best practices, and their adoption.