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National Committee on Vital and Health Statistics
2000 Accomplishments

The National Center for Health Statistics (Data Policy and Standards Staff) serves as Executive Secretary to the National Committee on Vital and Health Statistics (NCVHS), the advisory committee to the Secretary of the Department of Health and Human Services on health information policy. The NCVHS accomplishments in 2000 include:

  • Submitted the third annual report to Congress on Implementation of the Administrative Simplification Provisions of the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 (HIPAA). These annual reports by the Committee are required by the HIPAA legislation. (Submitted March 27, 2000)
  • Continued to maintain close liaison with the HHS Data Council and the HIPAA departmental implementation teams in developing and carrying out the Committee’s work plan.
  • Finalized a report prepared by the Subcommittee on Populations on review of Medicaid managed care data issues. The report, which includes findings and recommendations on data collection, analyses and reporting for Medicaid managed care organizations, was transmitted to the Secretary and the HHS Data Council, as well as to HCFA, for review.
  • Finalized a report prepared by the Subcommittee on Populations with recommendations on health data needs and issues in the U.S.- associated insular areas. The report, “Health Data Needs of the Pacific Insular Areas, Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands” was transmitted to the Secretary and HHS Data Council.
  • Completed and approved a report on NCVHS activities during 1999 which was incorporated into the report on NCVHS at Fifty for the June 20, 2000 Anniversary Symposium.
  • Celebrated its fiftieth anniversary with a Symposium featuring interim reports prepared by the Workgroup on 21st Century Health Statistics and the Workgroup on National Health Information Infrastructure. In addition to presenting the reports with reactor panelists, the Symposium included remarks by the Secretary, Data Council co-chair, and former NCVHS chairs, discussing the historical accomplishments of the Committee and future challenges.
  • Developed the interim report “Shaping a Vision for 21st Century Health Statistics” which identifies trends and gaps in shaping the vision, as well as cross-cutting issues encompassing population health and health statistics data systems at local, state, and national levels. Ten principles have emerged as essential qualities to developing the health statistics vision. This is a collaborative project with the National Center for Health Statistics and the HHS Data Council.
  • Developed the interim report “Toward a National Health Information Infrastructure (NHII)”, which explores the concept of a framework that can link health improvements and information technologies. Three “dimensions” of the NHII–the personal health dimension, the health care provider dimension, and the community health dimension–represent virtual information spaces and illustrate the ways in which content, functions, users, and requirements overlap.
  • Distributed the interim reports at NCHS Data User’s Conference (July 26-28, 2000), as well as at other health data meetings throughout the year. Earlier in the year, both projects were presented at the conference, “Partnership for Health in the New Millennium–Launching Healthy People 2010".
  • Briefed CDC Director on issues presented in the interim reports in a special session for senior CDC staff (October 5, 2000).
  • Organized a series of national hearings (in Chicago, IL; San Francisco, CA; Raleigh/Durham NC; Washington, D.C. ) seeking input about the interim reports via panels of presenters as well as written and oral testimony. Workgroups also sought reactions to specific issues, for example local, state, and national health data needs, private and public sector cooperation, barriers (e.g. financial or technical) to accomplishing objectives described in the reports, confidentiality and privacy issues, and methodology and technology-related issues. Information obtained will be included in final reports expected to be completed in 2001.
  • Completed a report, “Uniform Data Standards for Patient Medical Record Information (PMRI),” through the 2-year-long effort of the Computer-based Patient Record Workgroup. Activity included six hearings to receive testimony from a wide range of data collectors, users and standards organizations. The report discusses the needs for PMRI standards, explores impediments to the development and implementation of PMRI standards, and proposes recommendations to address these impediments. After submitting the report to the Secretary on July 12, 2000, the NCVHS and Workgroup Chairs presented it to the HHS Data Council (August 9).
  • Provided consultation to representative from GAO to share insight about CPR and quality of care. Subsequently, NCVHS received an update about “Government Computer-based Patient Record” (GCPR) from representatives of Framework Project Management Team (Sept 20, 2000.)
  • Provided detailed comments and suggestions on the Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) on Standards for Privacy of Individually Identifiable Health Information (2/2000). The Committee congratulated the Department for the solid work done in drafting the NPRM and acknowledged that many of its 1997 recommendations on health information privacy had been incorporated into the proposed role. The NCVHS further noted that there still is a need for anti- discrimination legislation as well as comprehensive federal legislation to cover all records or all entities with access to individually identifiable health information.
  • Facilitated the signatories for a Memorandum of Understanding Among Organizations Designated to Manage the Maintenance of the Transaction Standards Adopted Under HIPAA in an unprecedented display of solidarity (3/2000).
  • Received testimony through hearings on tracking implementation of HIPAA, including security implementation, enforcement, data content and local code sets. Submitted a letter to the Secretary providing advice and recommendations.
  • Held a hearing on electronic signatures and digital signatures and their uses in health care applications. The Subcommittee on Standards and Security will be conducting further study before formulating recommendations to the Department regarding this HIPAA standard.
  • Held a hearing on Internet use for health information and the privacy implications, with presentations received from a variety of Internet-based organizations, health care groups, academic resources, and the American Medical Association.
  • Received a briefing on best practices of Institutional Review Boards, as detailed in an Institute of Medicine (IOM) report: Institutional Review Boards: Health Services Research Data Privacy Protection. Also received a briefing on the IOM report on patient safety in hospital care, To Err is Human–Building a Safer Health System.”
  • Heard from a panel organized by the Subcommittee on Privacy and Confidentiality on Analysis of State Privacy Laws, and reviewed a draft of the proposed revisions of the Uniform Health Care Information Act.
  • Received briefings on Departmental initiatives including the evaluation plan for the State Children’s Health Insurance Program, and Eliminating Disparities and Leading Indicators Initiatives.
  • Participated in a series of regional discussions groups involving state and local officials as well as health data producers and users in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, Albuquerque, New Mexico, and New Orleans, Louisiana, to elicit a broad range of expert opinion on the major trends and issues in population health and their implications for future health information needs. All of these activities provided input to the interim report presented at NCVHS 50th Anniversary Symposium.
  • Has been exploring the feasibility of including a data element on functional status in health administrative (encounter) records. Specifically, the Subcommittee on Populations has been studying the possible use of the International Classification of Impairments, Disabilities and Handicaps (ICIDH-2), which is undergoing an international revision, as a system for coding such data. During the course of this year the Subcommittee has been hearing testimony and obtaining input on the ICIDH-2 from a variety of sources: data users, professional associations, such as APTA and AOTA, advocates for various groups of persons with disabilities, the World Health Organization, etc.
  • Commented on revision process of ICIDH as proposed by the World Health Organization in letter to the Secretary (Oct 3, 2000).
  • Received a briefing from the NCHS Director on NCHS activities, the Interagency Working Group on Summary Measures of Health, and the ECE-WHO Joint Meeting on Health Statistics.
  • Held a panel presentation on Summary Measures of Population Health. The session addressed the various purposes for using summary health measures, the different measures that are proposed or in use, their implications for health information system development, the major methodological issues under study and plans to use summary health measures in the U.S. and internationally. The Committee is considering further exploration of this topic.
  • Continues to follow the activities of the Public Health Data Standards Consortium, which was established in response to a consensus recommendation at the 1998 Workshop on Implications of the Administrative Simplification Provisions of HIPAA for Public Health and Health Services Research. The Consortium is serving as a mechanism for ongoing representation of public health and health services research interests in HIPAA implementation and other data standards setting processes.
  • Initiated a strategic planning process at an Executive Subcommittee retreat in August.

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