Addition of New Codes into Administrative Data: An Outline of the Process and Benefits for Occupational Health Surveillance

Background: During the course of a grant focused on firefighter injury surveillance, we proposed the addition of Bureau of Labor Statistics Standard Occupational Classification (SOC) codes and the North American Industry Classification System (NAICS) to health data standards used for state-based claims data. These codes have wide ranging application to every occupational group and those who study them (e.g., federal government, private agencies, and academic partners). As a result, the use of hospital data for public health purposes will increase. Methods: The process will be completed in three stages. The proposal has been submitted to X12N. X12N is responsible for the insurance transaction standards and the work products related to the implementation of the standards. Next, it will go to NUBC. NUBC is responsible for the maintenance of the Uniform Bill. Once the codes are incorporated in the Reporting Guide and approved by NUBC for the Uniform Bill, States will be notified of the changes and potential to implement collection of the codes. Results: At present the proposal has passed X12N and is pending a vote by NUBC. Since the X12N vote was strongly in favor of the addition, we expect it to pass and be added to the Reporting Guide in October 2011. Conclusion: This presentation will describe the process used to propose and add an external code set to administrative hospital data. Although the impetus for the proposal stemmed from firefighter injury surveillance, the process has broad implications and benefits for the entire occupational health surveillance field.