NCHS: A Blog of the National Center for Health Statistics

Dental Care Among Adults Aged 65 Years and Over, 2017

Questions for Lead Author Ellen Kramarow, Health Statistician, of “Dental Care Among Adults Aged 65 Years and Over, 2017.” Q: Why focus on dental care among adults aged 65 years or older in the United States? EK: Dental care is often overlooked as people age, but it is an important component of overall health care. Read More >

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Quickstats: Rates of Injury from Sports, Recreation, and Leisure Activities Among Children and Adolescents Aged 1–17 Years, by Age Group — National Health Interview Survey, United States, 2015–2017

In 2015–2017, the rate of sports, recreation, and leisure injuries among children and adolescents aged 1–17 years was 82.9 per 1,000 population. The rate of sports, recreation, and leisure injuries increased with age from 48.4 for those aged 1–4 years, to 72.7 for those aged 5–11 years, and to 117.1 for those aged 12–17 years. Read More >

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Trends in Cancer and Heart Disease Death Rates Among Adults Aged 45–64: United States, 1999–2017

Questions for Sally Curtin, M.A., Statistician, and Lead Author of “Trends in Cancer and Heart Disease Death Rates Among Adults Aged 45–64: United States, 1999–2017.” Q:  Why are death rates from cancer dropping steadily over time and why are death rates from heart disease starting to rise? SC: The death rates are a reflection of Read More >

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Strategies Used by Adults Aged 65 and Over to Reduce Their Prescription Drug Costs, 2016-2017

Questions for Robin Cohen, Ph.D. and Lead Author of “Strategies Used by Adults Aged 65 and Over to Reduce Their Prescription Drug Costs, 2016-2017” Q: Why did you decide to do a report on strategies used to reduce prescription drug costs in the United States? RC: Although most adults aged 65 and over have prescription Read More >

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Melanoma Deaths Down Four Years in a Row in 2017

Source:  National Vital Statistics System, CDC WONDER, 1999-2017 (http://wonder.cdc.gov).  This chart represents the number of deaths from ICD-10 code C 43 “Malignant melanoma of the skin” Read More >

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Updated Provisional Drug Overdose Death Data: 12-Month Ending from October 2017- October 2018

Link: https://www.cdc.gov/nchs/nvss/vsrr/drug-overdose-data.htm Read More >

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Births: Provisional Data for 2018

Questions for Brady E. Hamilton, Ph.D., Demographer, Statistician, and Lead Author of “Births: Provisional Data for 2018.” Q: How does the provisional 2018 birth data compare to previous years? BH: The  number of births, the general fertility rate, the total fertility rate, birth rates for women aged 15-34, the cesarean delivery rate and the low-risk Read More >

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QuickStats: Age-Adjusted Percentages of Persons of All Ages Who Delayed Seeking Medical Care in the Past 12 Months Because of Worry About Cost,† by U.S. Census Region of Residence — National Health Interview Survey, 2012 and 2017

The percentage of persons of all ages who delayed seeking medical care in the past 12 months because of worry about the cost decreased from 8.2% in 2012 to 6.3% in 2017, and this pattern was consistent in each U.S. Census region of residence. Delays in seeking medical care because of worry about the cost Read More >

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Health Insurance Coverage: Early Release of Estimates From the National Health Interview Survey, 2018

Questions for Emily P. Terlizzi, M.P.H., Associate Service Fellow and Lead Author on “Health Insurance Coverage: Early Release of Estimates From the National Health Interview Survey, 2018” Q; How did the uninsured vary by age groups and compare to last year in this report? ET: In 2018, 9.4% of persons of all ages, 11.1% of Read More >

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Prescription Drug Use in the United States, 2015–2016

Questions for Lead Author Crescent Martin, Health Statistician, of “Prescription Drug Use in the United States, 2015–2016.” Q: Why did you decide to do a report on prescription drug use in the United States? CM: We wanted to update a previous report that found an increase in prescription drug use from 1999–2000 through 2007–2008, using Read More >

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Service Provision, Hospitalizations, and Chronic Conditions in Adult Day Services Centers: Findings From the 2016 National Study of Long-Term Care Providers

Questions for Lead Author Christine Caffrey, Health Statistician, of “Service Provision, Hospitalizations, and Chronic Conditions in Adult Day Services Centers: Findings From the 2016 National Study of Long-Term Care Providers.” Q: Why did you decide to do a report on hospitalizations and chronic conditions by service provision in adult day services centers? CF: A primary Read More >

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QuickStats: Age-Adjusted Percentages of Adults Aged 18 Years or Older Who Were Told in the Past 12 Months by a Doctor or Health Professional That They Had Sinusitis by Sex, Race, and Hispanic Origin — National Health Interview Survey, 2017

Among adults aged 18 years or older, women (15%) were more likely than men (8.8%) to have been told by a doctor or health professional in the past 12 months that they had sinusitis. Among men, non-Hispanic white men (10.1%) were more likely than both non-Hispanic black (7.0%) and Hispanic (5.8%) men to have received Read More >

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QuickStats: Percentage of Persons in Families Having Problems Paying Medical Bills in the Past 12 Months by Age Group

From 2011 to 2017, the overall percentage of persons who were in U.S. families having problems paying medical bills in the past 12 months decreased from 19.7% to 14.6%. Similar trends were observed for all age groups, with a decrease from 23.2% to 16.8% for children aged 18 years or younger, from 20.6% to 15.5% Read More >

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QuickStats: Age-Adjusted Percentages of Adults Aged 18 Years or Older Without a Usual Place of Health Care by Region

      Among adults aged 18 years or older, 13.9% were without a usual place of health care in 2017. Adults in the South (16.4%) were more likely be without a usual place of health care compared with adults in the West (14.4%) and Midwest (12.7%). Adults in the Northeast (9.4%) were least likely Read More >

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April is Alcohol Awareness Month

Abuse of alcohol can lead to a variety of health problems, including chronic liver disease and cirrhosis, which is the 11th leading cause of death in the United States. In 2017, 41,743 Americans died of chronic liver disease and cirrhosis¹. Nearly two-thirds of those deaths were to men. Chronic liver disease and cirrhosis is the Read More >

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QuickStats: Percentage of Adults Who Met Federal Guidelines for Aerobic Physical Activity Through Leisure-Time Activity by Race/Ethnicity — National Health Interview Survey, 2008–2017

During 2008–2017, the percentage of adults aged 18 years or older who met federal guidelines for aerobic physical activity through leisure-time activity increased from 43.5% in 2008 to 54.1% in 2017. This pattern was seen in each race/ethnicity group shown, with an increase from 33.4% to 45.0% for Hispanic, 34.1% to 44.3% for non-Hispanic black, Read More >

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QuickStats: Age-Adjusted Percentage of Adults Aged 18 Years or Older Who Reported That They Needed Dental Care During the Past 12 Months But Didn’t Get It Because They Couldn’t Afford It, by Sex, Race, and Hispanic Origin

In 2017, more women (12.7%) than men (8.8%) reported that at some time during the past 12 months they needed dental care but didn’t get it because they couldn’t afford it. This pattern was consistent within each racial/ethnic group: Hispanic, non-Hispanic white, and non-Hispanic black. Among both men and women, Hispanic adults were most likely Read More >

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Drug Overdose Deaths Involving Fentanyl, 2011–2016

Questions for Lead Author Merianne Spencer, M.P.H., Health Statistician, of “Drug Overdose Deaths Involving Fentanyl, 2011-2016.” Q: Why did you decide to do a report specifically on drug overdose deaths involving fentanyl? MS: Fentanyl, a synthetic opioid, is of interest to public health officials because of its increased involvement in drug overdose deaths and contributing Read More >

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Strategies Used by Adults Aged 18–64 to Reduce Their Prescription Drug Costs, 2017

A new NCHS report examines changes over time in the percentage of adults aged 18–64 who were prescribed medication and reported using these selected strategies to reduce their prescription drug costs in the past 12 months. Key Findings: Among adults aged 18–64 who were prescribed medication in the past 12 months, the percentage who used Read More >

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QuickStats: Age-Adjusted Death Rates by State — United States, 2017

In 2017, the overall U.S. death rate was 731.9 per 100,000 standard population; rates varied by state. The five states with the highest age-adjusted death rates were West Virginia (957.1 deaths per 100,000 standard population), Mississippi (951.3), Kentucky (929.9), Alabama (917.7), and Oklahoma (902.4). The five states with the lowest death rates were Hawaii (584.9), Read More >

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Dementia Mortality in the United States, 2000–2017

A new NCHS report presents data on mortality attributable to dementia. Data for dementia as an underlying cause of death from 2000 through 2017 are shown by selected characteristics such as age, sex, race and Hispanic origin, and state of residence. Trends in dementia deaths overall and by specific cause are presented. The reporting of Read More >

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Updated Provisional Drug Overdose Death Data: 12-Month Ending from August 2017-August 2018

Link: https://www.cdc.gov/nchs/nvss/vsrr/drug-overdose-data.htm Read More >

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Early Release of Selected Estimates Based on Data From January-September 2018 National Health Interview Survey

Questions for Lead Author Tainya C. Clarke, Ph.D., M.P.H., Health Statistician, of “Early Release of Selected Estimates Based on Data From January-September 2018 National Health Interview Survey.” Q: What exactly is an MSA? TC: According the Office of Management and Budget (OMB), a Metropolitan Statistical Area is where one or more adjacent counties or county Read More >

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QuickStats: Percentage of Adults Aged 18 Years or Older Who Had Visited an Emergency Department at Least Once in the Past 12 Months, by Age Group and Inflammatory Bowel Disease (IBD) Status

In 2015 and 2016, adults with IBD were more likely to have visited an emergency department at least once in the past 12 months than were those without IBD (33% versus 18.9%); this pattern was observed for all age groups. Among adults aged 18–34, 35–64, and 65 years or older, those with IBD were more Read More >

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Health Insurance Coverage: Early Release of Estimates From the National Health Interview Survey, January–September 2018

Questions for Emily P. Terlizzi, M.P.H., Health Statistician and Lead Author on “Health Insurance Coverage: Early Release of Estimates From the National Health Interview Survey, January–September 2018” Q: How did the uninsured vary by age groups in this report? ET: In the first 9 months of 2018, 9.2% of persons of all ages, 10.8% of Read More >

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