NCHS Vital Statistics

General Overview

The DDRC has acquired mortality data from the Vital Statistics Online Data Portal , spanning the years 2010 to 2021. This dataset includes detailed demographic information. The following document outlines the acquired data and provides a comprehensive data dictionary to assist with data interpretation. This dataset is intended to support research and analysis efforts aimed at addressing the drug and opioid crisis across the region.

The data provided is based on information available from the Vital Statistics Online Data Portal at the time of download. Please note that this data may be updated or corrected without notice as new information becomes available.

Information related to the variables included in the dataset is available in the DDRC's Vital Stats Data Dictionary. Information on how the DDRC's data dictionary was created can be found on the respective Technical Assistance page.

Overview of Vital Statistics Data and Online Data Portal

The Vital Statistics Online Data Portal provides data from the National Vital Statistics System (NVSS), managed by the National Center for Health Statistics (NCHS) within the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). The Vital Statistics data portal provides annual national birth and death information, including details on age, gender, race, and causes of death, to support informed public health decisions and improve life expectancy for the nation and U.S. Territories.

Data Use Guidelines and Confidentiality Standards

Data from the Vital Statistics Online Data Portal is subject to the CDC and NCHS data use restrictions as outlined in their Data User Agreement. This dataset is to be used exclusively for statistical reporting and analysis. Users are prohibited from linking it to other datasets in an attempt to identify individuals or establishments. Any inadvertent identification must not be disclosed and should be promptly reported to the CDC.

To protect confidentiality, NCHS removes direct identifiers and any characteristics that could lead to identification, including geographic location.

We comply with these terms and expect that any third parties accessing or using data from the DDRC will do the same.

Understanding Mortality Causes and ICD-10

Mortality causes are defined using the International Classification of Diseases 10th Revision (ICD-10). For more information on the ICD-10 CM system, please refer to the CDC’s ICD-10 CM page.

Acquiring Vital Statistics Data

The DDRC has acquired the Vital Statistics Mortality data for the United States from 2010 to 2021 from the Vital Statistics Online Data Portal. The portal includes interactive online data access tools and downloadable public use data files.

Technical Assistance

Detailed information on the export, transform, and loading (ETL) processes, can be found on the corresponding Technical Assistance page.

DDRC Data Dictionary for Vital Statistics Data

The DDRC created a comprehensive data dictionary by combining the data dictionaries provided by the NVSS for each year of data. The goal of this comprehensive document was to demonstrate how variables in the dataset have changed over time, with the addition and removal of variables.

We recommend that users still review and reference documentation provided by Vital Statistics Online Data Portal for the most detailed and up-to-date information.

Information related to the variables included in the dataset is available in the DDRC's Vital Stats Data Dictionary. Information on how the DDRC's data dictionary was created can be found on the respective Technical Assistance page.