Table of contents:
Our MissionOur ReportsOur Advisory CommitteesAdvisory CouncilAnnual Report Advisory CommitteeSenior Report Advisory CommitteeHealth of Women and Children Report Advisory Committee
Our Model and Methodology
IntroductionRanking MethodologyMeasures, Weights and DirectionMeasures Selection and ChangesData SourcesDisparity Measurement MethodologyThe Administration for Community Living
is a division of the United States Department of Health and Human Services. The administration funds various community programs, social services, and training and research initiatives that help older adults and people with disabilities live independently. The administration’s State Program Reports, available through the AGing, Independence and Disability Program Data (AGID) Portal, provide data annually on Older Americans Act services.
The American Community Survey is an ongoing statistical survey coordinated by the U.S. Census Bureau that provides detailed information on national population demographics. The survey collects and produces information about social, economic, housing and demographic characteristics from the nation's civilian noninstitutionalized population each year. Data are derived from the bureau directly via its 1-year and 5-year datasets or from the public use microdata sample (PUMS) file.
The American Nonsmokers’ Rights Foundation is a nonprofit organization dedicated to educating the public about the adverse health effects of smoking and secondhand smoke exposure, as well as the benefits of smoke-free environments. The foundation produces lists and maps covering laws regarding clean air, e-cigarettes, marijuana and tobacco sales in pharmacies. Data are accessed via the Lists & Maps webpage.
The American Time Use Survey provides annual activity insights into how Americans spend their daily time. The survey is conducted by the Bureau of Labor Statistics, which collects and analyzes data on employment, wages and other workplace statistics for the U.S. Department of Labor. Data are obtained from the bureau’s website.
The Annual Homelessness Assessment Report is provided to Congress each year by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD). The report provides national estimates of homelessness and capacity and use of homeless services based on data from the Homeless Management Information System. Data are accessed via the HUD User Data Portal.
The Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System (BRFSS) is the nation's largest phone-based population survey. The survey, coordinated by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) in collaboration with state, territory and federal agencies, provides information about health-related risk behaviors, chronic health conditions and use of preventive services. Data are accessed via the CDC’s BRFSS web page.
The Care Compare tool, run by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, helps users find and compare providers and services by furnishing detailed information about every Medicare- and Medicaid-certified nursing home in the country, including health inspections, staffing and various other quality measures. Data are accessed via the data archive for “nursing homes including rehab services.”
CDC WONDER is a query system for analyzing public-use data from the CDC’s National Center for Health Statistics on births and deaths, as well as other topics. Data are obtained from the Multiple Cause of Death, Linked Birth/Infant Death, Natality and Single-Race Population Estimates files.
Census of Fatal Occupational Injuries data are obtained from the Bureau of Labor Statistics’ Injuries, Illnesses, and Fatalities program and combined with employment data from the U.S. Department of Commerce’s Bureau of Economic Analysis.
The Center for Climate and Energy Solutions (C2ES) is a nonprofit environmental policy think tank that produces data and reports on climate basics, solutions and policies. Data are obtained from the C2ES website.
Characteristics of Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) Households reports have been published annually by the Food and Nutrition Service of the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) since 1976. The report provides information about the demographic and economic circumstances of SNAP participants and households each fiscal year.
Child Care Aware of America is a nonprofit organization that focuses on child care availability, quality and accessibility. Data on the cost of child care across states are published in the annual The U.S. and the High Price of Child Care report.
The Child Maltreatment report presents data about child abuse and neglect collected from child protective service agencies across the nation. The report is published annually by the Children’s Bureau, a federal office of the Administration for Children and Families dedicated to improving the health and well-being of children and families.
Child Welfare Outcomes report data are also produced by the Children’s Bureau each year. These reports measure state performance across indicators of child safety and well-being, incorporating data from the Adoption and Foster Care Analysis and Reporting System and the National Child Abuse and Neglect Data System. Data are obtained from the Child Welfare Outcomes data site. Complete reports are also available on the Administration for Children and Families website.
The Climate and Economic Justice Screening Tool, developed by the White House’s Council on Environmental Quality, used data from multiple high-quality sources to identify disadvantaged communities in categories of burdens that included climate change, energy, health, housing, legacy pollution, transportation, water and wastewater, as well as workforce development. With regard to climate change, the tool helped federal agencies identify where to invest in climate and clean energy before being discontinued in January of 2025.
Comprehensive Housing Affordability Strategy (CHAS) data are produced by HUD’s Office of Policy Development and Research, which manages specific housing data from the American Community Survey. These data demonstrate the extent of housing problems and needs, particularly for low-income households. Data are accessed via the Consolidated Planning/CHAS Data web portal.
EDFacts collects, analyzes and centralizes data from state education agencies and other data sources on district and school demographics, performance and participation for the U.S. Department of Education (ED). Data are obtained using the ED Data Express tool.
The Elder Fraud Report is published annually by the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s Internet Complaint Center, which collects and analyzes complaints about internet scams and other cybercrimes to create the report.
The Environmental Protection Agency performs various federal research, monitoring, standard-setting and enforcement activities to ensure environmental protection. National Safe Drinking Water Act data are reported by states, compiled from the Safe Drinking Water Information System database for public water systems and downloaded from the Enforcement and Compliance History Online (ECHO) website. State-level air pollution data are obtained via a special request to the agency.
The Fatality Analysis Reporting System uses state data collected by the U.S. Department of Transportation’s National Highway Traffic Safety Administration to produce a census of public motorway accidents resulting in fatalities within 30 days of a crash. Data are obtained from the Fatality and Injury Reporting System Tool (FIRST).
Federally Available Data (FAD) on measures of maternal and child health national outcomes and performance are collected and distributed by the Health Resources and Services Administration’s Maternal and Child Health Bureau. Data are from various sources, including the Healthcare Cost and Utilization Project, the National Vital Statistics System and the Pregnancy Risk Assessment Monitoring System (PRAMS). All FAD data are available to download from the FAD resource documents.
Feeding America publishes annual reports on food insecurity among seniors and older adults. The report documents the prevalence of food insecurity among older adults in the U.S. and identifies the geographic sociodemographic variation in food insecurity based on data from the December supplement to the Census Bureau’s Current Population Survey. Two years of data are combined to produce state-level estimates.
The Household Food Security in the United States report provides national statistics on food security, household food spending and use of federal food and nutrition assistance by food-insecure households. The report is produced annually by the USDA’s Economic Research Service using data from the Census Bureau’s Current Population Survey Food Security Supplements.
The Local Area Unemployment Statistics (LAUS) program produces monthly and annual employment, unemployment and labor force data by place of residence for the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Data are obtained from LAUS Expanded State Employment Status Demographic Data published on the bureau’s website.
The Long-Term Services and Supports (LTSS) State Scorecard is published every three years by the AARP Public Policy Institute. The report details long-term services and supports for older adults, people with physical disabilities and family caregivers, aggregating data from a variety of primary sources.
The Mapping Medicare Disparities (MMD) Tool is a comprehensive source of information from the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services’ Office of Minority Health, offering data on eliminating health disparities and improving the health of minority populations. This tool features health outcome measures of disease prevalence, costs, hospitalizations for 60 chronic conditions, emergency department use, readmissions rates, mortality, preventable hospitalizations and preventive services. Data are obtained from the MMD by Population website.
March of Dimes is a long-standing nonprofit advocacy organization for maternal and infant health. Their Perinatal Data Center provides access to maternal and infant health data for the U.S. Data are obtained via a special request to the Perinatal Data Center.
Maternity Practices in Infant Nutrition and Care (mPINC) is a CDC-administered biennial survey of breastfeeding support and maternity care in U.S. hospitals. Data are obtained from the mPINC State Reports website.
The National- and State-Level Estimates of WIC Eligibility and Program Reach report is published annually by the USDA. The report provides statistical and visual information about the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC).
The National Assessment of Educational Progress is the largest continuing and nationally representative assessment of student academic achievement and learning experiences in the U.S., administered by the Department of Education’s National Center for Education Statistics. Results from the assessment, including reading proficiency data, are published in the Nation’s Report Card.
The National Center for HIV/AIDS, Viral Hepatitis, STD and Tuberculosis Prevention (NCHHSTP) AtlasPlus allows users to create customized tables, maps and charts using more than 15 years of surveillance data on HIV/AIDS, viral hepatitis, sexually transmitted diseases, tuberculosis and social determinants of health. Data are obtained from the NCHHSTP AtlasPlus interactive website.
The National Environmental Public Health Tracking Network (NEPHTN) brings together health data and environmental data from national, state and city sources and provides supporting information to make the data easier to understand. Data from state and local health departments are compiled by the tracking network and accessed via their Data Explorer.
The National Immunization Surveys (NIS) are a set of ongoing phone surveys conducted by the CDC’s National Center for Immunization and Respiratory Diseases, which focuses on the prevention of disease, disability and death through immunization and control of respiratory and related diseases. Breastfeeding information is also collected from households with children ages 19-35 months. NIS-Child and NIS-Teen are obtained from the VaxView and Breastfeeding Rates websites. Data on RSV vaccinations among older adults are collected by the NIS-Adult COVID Module and accessed via the Weekly Cumulative RSV Vaccination Coverage website.
The National Plan and Provider Enumeration System (NPPES) is a registry developed by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services to improve the efficiency of electronic health information transmission. NPPES assigns a unique National Provider Identifier (NPI) number to covered health care providers and health plans to conduct all administrative and financial transactions under HIPAA, the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act. Data are accessed via the NPI files website.
The National Survey of Children’s Health collects annual data on children’s health and access to health care based on responses from a parent or guardian who knows about the child’s health and health care needs. Data for this report are obtained from the Maternal and Child Health Bureau, which funds and directs the survey. Survey data are also published annually on the Census Bureau’s website.
The National Survey on Drug Use and Health collects data on the use of illegal drugs, prescription drugs, alcohol and tobacco, as well as mental disorders, treatment and co-occurring substance use, at national, state and local levels. The survey is sponsored by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration. Data are obtained from State Estimates of Mental Health and Substance Use reports and the 2-Year Restricted-Use Data Analysis System.
The NHPCO Facts and Figures report is published annually by the National Hospice and Palliative Care Organization (NHPCO), the nation’s largest membership organization for hospice and palliative care workers and providers. The report leverages hospice claims data from the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services to produce statistics on hospice patient characteristics, location and level of care, as well as other topics. Data are accessed via the NHPCO website.
The Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics program produces employment statistics and wage estimates for nearly 800 occupations at national, state and metropolitan levels. Data are collected by the Bureau of Labor Statistics and obtained through the Occupational Employment and Wages Query System.
The Pregnancy Risk Assessment Monitoring System (PRAMS), formerly sponsored by the CDC in collaboration with state agencies, collected state-specific population-based data on maternal attitudes and experiences before, during and shortly after pregnancy. In April of 2025, the CDC PRAMS team received a reduction-in-force notice and the 2023 data were not published on the PRAMS Automated Research File web portal as scheduled.
The Shaping Long-Term Care in America Project is conducted at the Brown University Center for Gerontology and Healthcare Research and is supported in part by the National Institute on Aging. The LTCFocus project website provides data on long-term care, including facility characteristics, resident characteristics and long-term care policies by state, county and facility.
The State Energy Data System (SEDS), maintained by the U.S. Energy Information Administration, produces comprehensive statistics on state energy consumption, prices and expenditures over time. Data are obtained from the SEDS website.
The Student Homelessness in America report series uses data from the Department of Education’s EDFacts initiative to produce national and state-level information on the numbers of students experiencing homelessness each year and their characteristics and experiences. Report data are obtained from the National Center for Homeless Education.
The Survey of Non-Medical Use of Prescription Drugs (NMURx) Program is a data source from the Researched Abuse, Diversion and Addiction-Related Surveillance (RADARS®) System that collects product- and geographically-specific data on abuse, misuse and diversion of prescription drugs. The RADARS System is part of Denver Health and Hospital Authority’s Rocky Mountain Poison & Drug Safety. Data are obtained via a direct request to the organization.
The Survey of Occupational Injuries and Illnesses provides annual information on the incidence rate and number of work-related injuries, illnesses and fatal injuries, and how these statistics vary by incident, industry, geography, occupation and other characteristics. Data are collected by the Bureau of Labor Statistics’ Injuries, Illnesses, and Fatalities program and accessed via the CDC’s NEPHTN data explorer.
Trust for America’s Health is a public health policy, research and advocacy organization. State public health funding data are obtained via direct request to the organization.
Volunteering and Civic Life Supplement data are collected by the Current Population Survey, an ongoing statistical survey sponsored jointly by the Census Bureau and the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Data are released biennially in odd years and obtained from the Census Bureau’s website.
Voting and Registration Supplement data from the Current Population Survey are released by the Census Bureau every two years following national elections.
The Water Fluoridation Reporting System monitors community water systems receiving optimally fluoridated drinking water across the U.S. National and state-level data are obtained from the CDC’s Fluoridation Statistics website.
The Youth Risk Behavior Surveillance System (YRBSS) surveys students in grades nine through 12 every two years about health-related behaviors that contribute to the leading causes of death and disability in the U.S. Data are accessed via the CDC’s YRBSS Youth Online tool.