National Hospital Care Survey

Why Participate in NHCS?

Your Hospital is Important to Us!

In order for policy makers to form solid, evidence-based decisions about health care in the U.S. it is essential that we collect nationally representative data on hospital utilization. Each hospital selected for the National Hospital Care Survey (NHCS) uniquely represents facilities of similar size, service type, and geographic location. Without your help, it may be impossible to make estimates about the amount and types of care provided for patients in hospitals like yours.  Click here for the introductory letter from the NCHS Director [PDF – 53 KB].

 

What’s In It for You?

  • Better Health Care Data
  • The NHCS has the potential to capture the continuum of patient health care both across and beyond hospital settings. By linking visits across inpatient and outpatient settings as well as with external data sources such as the National Death Index, NHCS can provide better information about resource utilization and post-acute mortality. Your hospital’s participation is critical to this data collection effort!
  • Make a Difference
  • Your hospital will be part of a health care research effort that will lay the groundwork for analysis of health care, utilization, and integration of services across a broad spectrum of settings.  The important data your hospital provides will inform policies to improve the state of health care in the nation.
  • Access to the National Health Care Services Registry
    The National Health Care Surveys are working together with the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) Electronic Health Record (EHR) Incentive Programs: Promoting Interoperability (PI) (formerly known as Meaningful Use), and the Merit-based Incentive Payment System (MIPS).  Registration is free of charge.
  • Meaningful Data for Your Hospital
  • Your hospital data will be collected, analyzed and shared with you! Health care utilization statistics from your hospital, compiled from inpatient and ambulatory data you provide to us, will be returned to you in an easy to read single sheet summary report, containing figures and tables. Additionally, your hospital will have access to an online interactive Annual Hospital Report (AHR) that provides analysis on the data you submit to NHCS. You can access the beta version of the AHR here.
  • Community Benefit 
    Non-profit hospitals participating in the NHCS may be eligible for a tax exemption. For more information about this community benefit, please visit this page.
  • Additional Benefits
  • In addition to the summary report provided, your hospital will be compensated for set up and for each year of participation. We are here to help! Our survey staff is available to provide technical assistance to facilitate setting up data transmission mechanisms and schedules, as well as to furnish ongoing support.