News and Announcements

HCUP Fast Stats Data Update!

The Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ) has released new inpatient and emergency department (ED) data in HCUP Fast Stats—Opioid-Related Hospital Use. Fast Stats provides easy access to the latest HCUP-based statistics for health care information topics using visual statistical displays in stand-alone graphs, trend figures, or simple tables to convey complex information at a glance. The Opioid-Related Hospital Use pathway, previously updated in October 2018, now includes additional 2017 inpatient data (29 States), 2017 ED data (22 States), 2018 inpatient data (15 States), and 2018 ED data (4 States).

For additional information, please refer to the Fast Stats Frequently Asked Questions page or contact HCUP User Support.

What’s New with HCUPnet? 2016 Data Additions!

Nationwide statistics from the 2016 Nationwide Emergency Department Sample (NEDS) have been added to HCUPnet, the free, online query system that provides instant access to statistics and information based on HCUP databases. Its easy, step-by-step process allows users to explore many health care topics relating to hospital inpatient, ED, and ambulatory settings. Users also may generate tables and graphs on national, regional, and county-level statistics, including hospital readmissions and trends in the United States.

During summer 2019, AHRQ anticipates releasing 2016 data for the Community Level Statistics pathway on HCUPnet. This functionality allows users to generate statistics on hospital stays for counties or regions including those along the US-Mexico border. To check out the updates and start your own query, visit HCUPnet today at https://hcupnet.ahrq.gov/.

Coming Soon: HCUP 10^th Annual Outstanding Article of the Year Award Winners

The recipients of the 10th annual HCUP Outstanding Article of the Year (AOTY) Award will be announced June 3, 2019, during a special session on HCUP at the AcademyHealth Annual Research Meeting (ARM). Each year, AHRQ recognizes researchers who used HCUP databases to explore and address health care research topics and issues and published their findings in peer-reviewed journals. Honored work demonstrates how HCUP data has contributed to these investigations. Attendees of the session will be eligible to win a free HCUP nationwide database. Details about the time and title of the presentation can be found in the section of this newsletter.

Users can find a list of prior recipients on the HCUP Outstanding AOTY Award Archive Page and can learn about the selection process by visiting the Award Home Page on the HCUP-US Web site.

Learn About HCUP at the September 11 and 18 User Webinars

On September 11, a Webinar titled Overview of the HCUP Databases will provide an introduction to the HCUP family of databases. On September 18, a second Webinar, Overview of the HCUP Products and Tools, will cover the use of HCUP software tools and supplemental files to facilitate and augment research.

The Webinars will be open to the public at no charge. Each will require separate advance registration. Registration information and Webinar descriptions will be available in August on the HCUP Workshops and Webinars page.

Save the Date: HCUP Data Users’ Workshop on September 24

On September 24, AHRQ will sponsor a full-day, intermediate-level HCUP data users’ workshop at its headquarters in Rockville, Maryland. This workshop will teach health services researchers and analysts how to use or improve their use of HCUP databases and products within the context of the opioid and substance use topic.

The workshop will be open to the public at no charge, but space will be limited. Registration information and the workshop description will be available later this summer on the HCUP Workshops and Webinars page.

Data and Products

Recently Released: 2017 State Databases

Since March 2019, the following State databases have been released:

State Inpatient Databases (SID)
- 2017: District of Columbia, Florida, Kansas, Michigan, New Mexico, Nevada, North Carolina, and Rhode Island
State Ambulatory Surgery and Services Databases (SASD)
- 2017: Florida, Kansas, Michigan, and North Carolina
State Emergency Department Databases (SEDD)
- 2017: Florida, Kansas, North Carolina, and Rhode Island

Complete listings of available databases by year can be found in the Database Catalog on the HCUP-US Web site. Databases can be purchased online through the HCUP Central Distributor, and aggregated national and selected State statistics can be accessed via HCUPnet.

Publications Spotlights

Publications Using HCUP Data

Bucholz EM, Toomey SL, Schuster MA. Trends in pediatric hospitalizations and readmissions: 2010-2016. Pediatrics. 2019;143(2).

This study used the 2010–2016 Nationwide Readmissions Database (NRD) to characterize patient-level and hospital-level trends in annual pediatric (ages 1–17 years) admissions and 30-day readmissions. The article abstract is available via PubMed.

Ghertner R. U.S. county prevalence of retail prescription opioid sales and opioid-related hospitalizations from 2011 to 2014. Drug Alcohol Depend. 2019;194:330-5.

This study used the 2011–2014 SID and SEDD for 32 States along with data on opioid sales from the Automation of Reports and Consolidated Orders System (ARCOS) to determine the relationship between retail opioid sales rates and opioid-related hospitalization rates. The article abstract is available via PubMed.

To read additional recently published articles featuring HCUP data, please visit the Research Spotlights page on the HCUP-US Web site.

HCUP Q&A

Question: I am a graduate student working on my thesis and am interested in using HCUP data to support my analysis. Because I am not a coder or statistician, I am looking for some research-ready statistics as opposed to using the full HCUP databases. I noticed an online query tool, HCUPnet, on the HCUP-US Web site that seems easy to use and like it could be helpful for my study. I have a few questions about it before I get started:

How can I access HCUPnet? Is there a fee involved?
What data types and years are available?
How does HCUPnet handle the transition to the International Classification of Diseases, Tenth Revision (ICD-10)? Can I access International Classification of Diseases, Ninth Revision, Clinical Modification (ICD-9-CM) and Tenth Revision (ICD-10-CM) codes?

Answers:

How can I access HCUPnet? Is there a fee involved?

HCUPnet is an online query tool that features query pathways that use precalculated statistics from the HCUP databases. HCUPnet provides health care information for hospital inpatient, ED, and ambulatory settings, as well as population-based health care data on counties.

Users can access HCUPnet free of charge on the HCUPnet Web site at https://hcupnet.ahrq.gov/.

What data types and years are available?

HCUPnet users can access statistics from all of the HCUP hospital databases. The National (Nationwide) Inpatient Sample (NIS), the NRD, the Kids' Inpatient Database (KID), the NEDS, selected SID, selected SASD, and selected SEDD are available for States that have agreed to participate in HCUPnet. Descriptions of the databases are provided on the HCUP-US Web site at https://www.hcup-us.ahrq.gov/databases.jsp.

HCUPnet is updated as databases are released and now includes 2016 nationwide data for the NIS and NEDS. Additions for 2016 data in the County- and Region-Level pathways are expected in Summer 2019. The State statistics are updated as new State data are processed, and the national statistics are updated annually as the nationwide databases are released. The State databases are released throughout the year, usually starting 18 months from the end of the calendar year. Available States and years are listed on the HCUPnet pathways. Please note that because of the transition from ICD-9-CM to ICD-10-CM/Procedure Coding System (PCS) code sets in October 2015, the available statistics for this year are limited.

How does HCUPnet handle the transition to ICD-10? Can I access ICD-9-CM and ICD-10-CM codes?

Because of the transition from ICD-9-CM to ICD-10-CM/PCS code sets beginning October 1, 2015, the 2015 statistics were calculated using partial year data, and the available statistics are limited for this year only to reflect the underlying databases and changes in the diagnosis and procedure classification systems.

HCUPnet includes information from the first three quarters of 2015 (January to September) for continuity with ICD-9-CM coded data from previous years. The statistics for October to December are not available on HCUPnet.

ICD-10-CM and ICD-10-PCS queries have been added to HCUPnet, beginning with 2016 data.

HCUP Events

For a complete list of HCUP presentations and events, visit the HCUP Events Calendar.

June 2–4, 2019: AcademyHealth 2019 Annual Research Meeting (ARM)
- Exhibit Booth June 2–4, AHRQ will sponsor an exhibit booth. Representatives will be available to provide information and answer questions.
- Poster Presentations June 3 at 8:00 a.m., HCUP staff will give two poster presentations. Representatives will be available to provide information and answer questions. The presentations are titled—
  - County-Level Characteristics and Opioid-Related Hospitalization Rates
  - Measuring Aspects of the Safety-Net Mission: A Comparison of Three Safety-Net Hospital Definition
  - June 3 at 1:15 p.m., HCUP staff will give a poster presentation titled Utilization of Inpatient and Emergency Department Care at Safety-Net and Non-Safety-Net Hospitals Following Medicaid Expansion.
- Special Session June 3 at 11:30 a.m., HCUP staff will present a special session titled Overview of the Healthcare Cost and Utilization Project (HCUP) & Presentation of the AHRQ-AcademyHealth Outstanding Article of the Year Award.
- Podium Presentation June 4 at 10:00 a.m., HCUP staff will participate in a podium presentation titled The Distribution and Correlates of Neonatal Abstinence Syndrome Across Counties in the United States, 2016.

June 23–26, 2019: 8^th Annual Conference of the American Society of Health Economists (ASHEcon)
- Exhibit Booth June 23–26, AHRQ will sponsor an exhibit booth. Representatives will be available to provide information and answer questions.
- Spotlight Session June 24, at 5:30 p.m., HCUP staff will host a spotlight session titled Research Databases at the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ). Representatives will be available to provide information and answer questions.
September 11, 2019: HCUP Database Overview Webinar
September 18, 2019: HCUP Overview of Products and Tools Webinar
September 24, 2019: HCUP Data Users’ Workshop at AHRQ headquarters in Rockville, Maryland