From AEAStat staff:
On May 7, the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ) In the Department of Health and Human Services invited public comment on a proposed new information collection -- the Social and Health Experiences Self-Administered Questionnaire (SAQ) of the Medical Expenditure Panel Survey-Household Component (MEPS-HC). The SAQ data collection will begin in January 2021 and continue through mid-July 2021. The SAQ will supplement the data collected through MEPS-HC interviews.
The proposed SAQ (sample = 36,079) will include questions about social and behavioral determinants of health -- including questions about housing affordability and quality, neighborhood characteristics, food security, transportation needs, financial strain, smoking and physical activity, and experiences with discrimination, social support, general well-being, personal safety, and adverse circumstances in childhood. The information collected will be used to examine the relationship between measures of the social determinants of health and measures of health status, and the use and expense of health care services. The goal of this survey is to help understand the relationship between social determinants of health and health care need in order to ultimately improve health care and health. The study is being conducted by AHRQ through its contractors, Westat and RTI International.
SAQ data will be linked to the interview-based MEPS-HC Employment section, which covers questions about each person's employment or self-employment status. For jobs identified, this section asks questions to obtain contact information for each employer. For several types of jobs, questions are asked about type of business or industry, firm size, how long the person has worked at each job, whether health insurance was offered, hours worked, and job titles or main duties. For persons who are currently employed, questions ask about periods of unpaid leave at their job. For those not currently working, questions ask about previous jobs and the reasons for not working.
Federal Register notice:
https://www.federalregister.gov/documents/2020/05/07/2020-09724/agency-information-collection-activities-proposed-collection-comment-request
Draft SAQ survey instrument and supporting statement Parts A and B:
https://www.dropbox.com/sh/tk4agsp8432vycb/AADsVKxzq9v-bY30CjbfYuLGa?dl=0
MEPS-HC homepage:
https://www.meps.ahrq.gov/mepsweb/survey_comp/household.jsp
Point of contact: Sadeq Chowdhury, Ph.D., Division of Statistical Research and Methods, Center for Financing, Access and Cost Trends, AHRQ (301) 427-1666 sadeq.chowdhury@ahrq.hhs.gov
