All 1996-2021 completed MEPS-NHIS Link files are available through the AHRQ Data Center. Each MEPS-NHIS Link file contains a crosswalk that allows users to merge MEPS Full-Year public use files (PUFs) to NHIS person-level public use data files that contain data collected for MEPS respondents in the year prior to their initial year of MEPS participation.
Specifically, for the 1996-2019 MEPS-HC, each MEPS-NHIS Link file contains a crosswalk that enables data users to merge the MEPS Full-Year Population Characteristics PUF or the MEPS Full-Year Consolidated PUF with the NHIS person-level PUFs that contain data collected for MEPS respondents in the year prior to their initial year of MEPS participation. In each link file, a record exists for each person in the MEPS Full-Year PUFs. Sample persons in NHIS that do not link to any MEPS sample persons are not represented in the link file. Sample persons in the MEPS file who do not link with persons in the NHIS PUFs have values of 999999, 99, and 99 for the NHIS sample person IDs HHX, FMX, and FPX, respectively.
The 1996-2019 MEPS-HC collect data through an overlapping panel design. Each MEPS Full-Year PUF covers a full calendar year and contains data from Rounds 3, 4, and 5 of the MEPS first panel (which uses the NHIS prior data year 1 as its sampling frame) combined with data from Rounds 1, 2, and 3 of the MEPS second panel (which uses the NHIS prior data year 2 as its sampling frame).
For the 2020 MEPS-HC, the PUFs included three overlapping panels instead of two panels. This design change increased the sample size to compensate for low response rates and data collection challenges due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Therefore, the 2020 MEPS-NHIS Link file contains a crosswalk that will enable data users to merge the MEPS Full-Year PUFs with the corresponding NHIS person-level PUFs for three prior years that contain data collected for MEPS respondents in the year prior to their initial year of MEPS participation.
For the 2021 MEPS-HC, the PUFs included four overlapping panels instead of two. This design change increased the sample size to compensate for low response rates and data collection challenges due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Therefore, the 2021 MEPS-NHIS Link file contains a crosswalk that will enable data users to merge the MEPS Full-Year PUFs with the corresponding NHIS person-level PUFs for four prior years that contain data collected for MEPS respondents in the year prior to their initial year of MEPS participation.
In addition, due to the 2019 NHIS redesign, from each household only one adult and one child (if any children live in the household) were included in the NHIS sample. As a result, potentially only one adult and one child (if any), in each MEPS household in the 2020 or later MEPS panel could be linked to the 2019 or later NHIS PUF. The persons in the 2020 MEPS PUF who do not link with the persons in the NHIS PUFs for the prior 1, 2, or 3 data years (NHIS 2017-2019) have values of 999999, 99, 99, and 99 for the NHIS sample person IDs HHX, FMX, FPX, and RECTYPE, respectively. The persons in the 2021 MEPS PUF who do not link with the persons in the NHIS PUFs for the prior 1, 2, 3, or 4 data years (NHIS 2017-2020) have values of 999999, 99, 99, and 99 for the NHIS sample person IDs HHX, FMX, FPX, and RECTYPE, respectively.
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