Notice to Readers
NCHS National Center for Health Statistics Joins CDC
The National Center for Health Statistics (NCHS) has become a
part
of CDC. As of the first week of June, NCHS was transferred
administratively from the Office of the Assistant Secretary for
Health
to CDC. NCHS will continue its national role in data collection,
analysis, and research in statistical and survey methodology.
NCHS was formed in 1960 when the Public Health Service merged
its
National Office of Vital Statistics with the National Health
Survey.
The National Office of Vital Statistics, which collected data on
births, deaths, marriages, and divorces, had been transferred from
the
U.S. Bureau of the Census to the Public Health Service in 1946. The
National Health Survey had been established in 1956 as a source of
information on illness and disability in the United States.
To meet its legislative mandate to provide data to a variety of
users, NCHS maintains over a dozen survey and data systems. NCHS
relies on four primary mechanisms: accessing state
vital-registration
systems, personal interview surveys, health-examination surveys,
and
surveys of health-care providers. NCHS' two largest surveys of the
general population are the National Health Interview Survey and the
National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey. Other data
collection efforts, such as the National Survey of Family Growth,
the
National Maternal and Infant Health Survey, and special supplements
to
general population surveys are conducted to address specific health
topics for population subgroups. NCHS also serves as the World
Health
Organization's Collaborating Center for Classification of Diseases
for
North America, conducts research activities with other countries,
and
serves as a focal point for international conferences and other
cooperative endeavors.
Disclaimer
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