Press Release

New project aimed at collecting health data for Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander populations

The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention have launched a new project aimed at improving health data collection for Native Hawaiians and Pacific Islanders.  The information will be collected through the National Health Interview Survey, which is conducted by CDC’s National Center for Health Statistics.

As a way to increase the number of Native Hawaiian/Pacific Islander households included in the survey, the Native Hawaiian/Pacific Islander National Health Interview Survey uses the Census Bureau’s American Community Survey, which collects data on approximately 3 million households in the United States annually.

The Native Hawaiian/Pacific Islanders National Health Interview Survey will include a sample of approximately 4,000 households.  Data collection for the survey begins in February 2014 and findings will be available in the summer of 2015.  The data will help public health researchers to produce reports on a wide range of important health indicators for the Native Hawaiian/Pacific Islander population.

The confidentiality of responses is assured under Section 308 (d) of the Public Health Service Act.  Many procedures are in place to prevent the disclosure of personal data, including data encryption and secure data networks.  Responses are collected by the U.S. Census Bureau and securely transmitted to the National Center for Health Statistics where the data undergo edits and removal of personal identifiers.  The collected data are used for research and statistical purposes only.

“This project represents a significant milestone in our implementation of the HHS Action Plan to Reduce Racial and Ethnic Health Disparities by enhancing the availability and quality of data collected and reported on racial and ethnic minority populations,” said Dr. J. Nadine Gracia, HHS Deputy Assistant Secretary for Minority Health.  “This unprecedented survey, which further advances the goals of data collection as called for by the Affordable Care Act, will shed important light on the health status of the Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander population.”

CDC’s National Health Interview Survey is the nation’s largest in-person, household health survey, providing information on an individual’s health status, access to and use of health services, health insurance coverage, immunizations, risk factors, and health-related behaviors.  The data play a crucial role in monitoring and improving the health of the nation.  For example, Healthy People 2020, the set of public health goals and objectives for the nation, uses information from the survey to track progress toward its targets.

According to the 2010 U.S. Census, Native Hawaiians and Pacific Islanders comprise just 0.4 percent of the total U.S. population, which makes it difficult to include them in sufficient numbers in most national population-based health surveys.  The lack of reliable health data for this population has made it difficult to assess their health status and health care utilization.  However, the available data for this population indicates that they experience significant health disparities when compared to other groups. 

“CDC’s National Center for Health Statistics regards this project as a major step forward in providing much needed health data about the ethnically and culturally diverse U.S. population,” said Charles Rothwell, NCHS director.

For more information about the National Health Interview Survey visit www.cdc.gov/nchs/nhis.htm.

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U.S. DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES