Attachment 2 -- HC About MEPS Booklet

About MEPS
Medical Expenditure Panel Survey

Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
U.S. Department of Health and Human Services

Introduction
The Medical Expenditure Panel
Survey (MEPS) is a principal
source of information about
how people in the United States
receive health care and how
they pay for that care. MEPS is
one of the major data collection
programs of the U.S. Department
of Health and Human Services.
It is conducted by the Agency
for Healthcare Research and
Quality (AHRQ) and the Centers
for Disease Control and
Prevention (CDC).
MEPS includes two components,
the largest of which is a nationwide survey of families and
individuals. The other component
of MEPS collects information
directly from medical providers.
By linking these sources of data,
MEPS provides a comprehensive
picture of how Americans use
and pay for health care.

Researchers and government policymakers
use MEPS data to help assess the benefits
and costs of major health care policy
choices facing the nation.

History of the
Medical Expenditure Panel Survey
The Medical Expenditure Panel Surveys (MEPS) began
in the 1970s, a time when the structure of American
health care delivery, private insurance, Federal health
care programs, and even the demographic composition
of the country began to undergo dramatic changes.
Recent years have seen intensification of these

changes. MEPS is designed to help us understand
how these changes affect the kinds and amounts
of health care Americans use and how they pay for
that care.

Purpose and Scope
The household component of MEPS is a large-scale
survey of individuals and families in scientifically
selected communities across the nation. MEPS
participants are chosen from among the individuals
and families who participated previously in the
National Health Interview Survey (NHIS) conducted
by the U.S. Bureau of the Census.
Information from the household survey is used each
year to create national estimates of health status,
health insurance coverage, health care use, the sources
that pay for health care, and amounts paid. MEPS data
provide estimates for individuals and families in the
overall U.S. civilian population as well as in major
subgroups of the population.

MEPS uses a panel design; that is, each year a new
group of households begins the series of interviews
that cover 2 full calendar years. This design allows
researchers to study how changes in health status,
income, employment, and health insurance coverage
are related to the use of health care services and
payment for care. Information from MEPS can be
compared with data from prior years to examine how
these factors change over time.
Researchers use MEPS data to help understand
many aspects of our health care system. Government
policymakers use the data to help assess the benefits
and costs of major health care policy choices facing
the nation.

Data Collection Procedures
Survey participants are introduced to the survey
through advance mailings in December and January.
They participate in a series of five in-person interviews
conducted at 5- to 6-month intervals.
Survey information is collected for all eligible family
members. Generally, one knowledgeable adult family
member answers the survey questions for the entire
family. The length of the interview will vary depending
on the family size, and the nature and extent of their
health experiences.

making the administration of the interview more
efficient.
The data for this survey are collected by a national
field force of 500 professionally trained interviewers
directed by 32 regional supervisors. The Agency
for Healthcare Research and Quality chose Westat,
a survey research organization with headquarters in
the Washington, DC area, to employ the field staff
and conduct the interviews. All field staff wear a
survey identification badge.

On average, the in-person interviews require less
than 2 hours per household. Interviewers use laptop
computers to record answers to the survey questions,

Topics Covered in the Interviews
The interviews cover a variety of topics related to
health care, including:
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Demographics (age, race, sex, etc.)
Health conditions
Current health status
Visits to health care providers
Charges and payments for health care
Prescription medicines
Employment
Health insurance
Satisfaction with health care

Each interview focuses on information for a specific
period of time, generally since January 1 or the
previous interview. A complete set of interviews
collects health information for 2 full calendar years.

By participating in MEPS, you can help the U.S. Department of Health and
Human Services obtain a complete and comprehensive picture of the health
care issues facing Americans, and shape the health care system of tomorrow.

Uses of the Data
The primary users of MEPS data include government
institutions, public and private research organizations,
universities, health care providers, and educators.
Important findings from the survey are published in
major journals. Recent findings, information about
public data releases, and much more information
about the study are available on the AHRQ web site
(www.MEPS.AHRQ.gov).

Requests for further information about the Medical
Expenditure Panel Survey (MEPS) should be
addressed to:
Project Director
Medical Expenditure Panel Survey
Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality
540 Gaither Road
Rockville, MD 20850

Questions About MEPS

1

What is the Medical Expenditure
Panel Survey (MEPS)?

MEPS is an ongoing comprehensive survey that studies
the cost of health care and the ways Americans pay for
health care. Conducted for the Department of Health
and Human Services, this survey is a principal source
of data about the U.S. health care system. MEPS is
conducted with a cross-section of the American public
and collects detailed information on health status,
health care use and expenses, and the way people
pay for health care.

2

W hy do we need a national
survey of medical expenditures?

MEPS provides detailed information on the cost of
health care for the entire population of the United
States. This information is vital for answering questions
about how the health care system operates currently,
and how changes in that system would affect the
public.

3

W hat makes MEPS different
from other surveys?

MEPS is the only national medical survey that is able
to link data on individuals and households directly with
their medical use and health care costs. No other
survey contains such essential information for
determining the true cost of health care and who pays
for it. In addition to providing an ongoing source of
current data, MEPS makes it possible to examine how
health care use, expenses, sources of payment, and
insurance coverage change over time.

4

W hat do I have to do
to participate?

Some of the questions deal with topics such as age,
education, and employment and can be answered
easily. Most questions ask about health-related issues
such as use of prescription medicines and specific
health events such as visits to a doctor’s office. You may
find it easier to answer questions if you have medical
bills, receipts, or notes on a personal calendar, but
these materials are not required for participation.

5

Who uses MEPS data?

MEPS data are used by a wide variety of people from
both the private and public sectors, including hospitals;
health care planners; and Federal, State, and local
government agencies.

6

Can MEPS be used to inform
U.S. health care policymakers?

The information from MEPS provides input that’s critical
to public policy issues and the evaluation of proposals
to improve the health care system. MEPS data have
also proved valuable in examining how changes
in health insurance coverage over time have affected
availability and use of health services, particularly
by children.

7

What information does MEPS
collect that can help me?

MEPS data on health status, access to medical care,
and the satisfaction with that care help policymakers
and researchers assess the extent to which the health
care needs of the American public are being met.
MEPS is the only source of information available for
estimating the total health care costs families face each
year. Here are some examples:
Elderly: MEPS data can be used to examine the
proportion of personal income the elderly and their
families are using to pay for medical care not covered
by Medicare.
Minorities: MEPS can be used to assess differences
among various racial and ethnic groups in health
insurance coverage, health care use, and costs paid
directly by the family.
Children: MEPS also collects data on children’s
immunizations, the types of doctors who treat them,
and any disabilities the children have.

MEPS is the only national medical
survey that is able to link data on
individuals and households directly with
their medical use and health care costs.

Answers MEPS Will Give Us
MEPS addresses many questions that are asked of the
health care industry. How does health care use, cost,
and insurance status vary by:
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Income
Age
Race and Ethnicity
Geographic Locale
Family Composition
Household Health Status
Functional Impairment
Chronic/Acute Conditions
Employment Status

MEPS questions about private health insurance ask:
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Who is covered?
Sources of coverage:
– Employment-related plans
– Public health insurance plans such as Medicare,
TRICARE, and State-sponsored programs such
as Medicaid and SCHIP (State Children’s Health
Insurance Program)
– Private insurance purchased directly from an
insurance company or HMO
How coverage affects use of services?

Users of MEPS Data
Here are a few examples:

Private

Public

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Insurance Companies
– Blue Cross and Blue Shield
– Kaiser Permanente
– United Healthcare Corp.
n Associations
– American Association of Retired Persons (AARP)
– American Medical Association (AMA)
n Newspapers
– New York Times
n Pharmaceutical Companies
– Merck and Company, Inc.

Requests for further information about MEPS or any of
its component surveys should be addressed to:
Project Director
Medical Expenditure Panel Survey
Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality
540 Gaither Road
Rockville, MD 20850

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U.S. Department of Health and Human Services
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)
Food and Drug Administration (FDA)
National Institutes of Health (NIH)
U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)
Academic Institutions
– Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public
Health
– Duke University
– Harvard University
– University of California

If you have questions or comments, you may call
Alex Scott toll free at 1-800-945-MEPS (6377).
Or visit the AHRQ web site: www.meps.ahrq.gov

25534.1008.85770501
PUBLICATION: 09-211

OMB #0935-0118