Newsletter Archive
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Take Action! National Health Interview Survey and More
September 11, 2026by Meghan MauryRead MoreForm of the Week: National Health Interview Survey (NHIS). CDC is seeking approval to continue the National Health Interview Survey (NHIS) in 2027 and begin a major redesign in 2028. The redesigned survey would shift from primarily interviewer-administered collection to a mixed-mode approach that asks households to respond online or by mail first, with in-person follow-up for some nonresponders, while substantially shortening and simplifying the questionnaires. The change would eliminate many detailed health questions currently collected annually and end the fixed schedule for rotating questions, while retaining core measures of health, disability, insurance coverage and access to care.
Comments due October 19.Every time the government makes a change to a survey or a form — or introduces a new survey or form — you have the right to weigh in on that decision. The Take Action! newsletter highlights surveys or forms the government is changing, renewing, or introducing. Click the links to tell the government what you think about the changes they are making.
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The Public Health Cost of Eliminating Race and Ethnicity Data
September 08, 2026by Vi Le and Melanie KleinRead MoreThe near-complete elimination of gender identity from future data collection was the first wave of widespread reductions to demographic data since January 2025. We think race and ethnicity is likely to be the second. And while the administration’s approach to gender identity was done in one sweeping executive order, race and ethnicity data are being eroded from several directions.
The erosion began with the removal of information related to diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI), including topics like health equity and cultural competence, in response to executive orders. Then agencies began walking back their intent to implement the modernized race and ethnicity standards that were a decade in the making. The Office of Management and Budget repeatedly pushed back deadlines for implementation plans. Now, race and ethnicity questions are beginning to be removed entirely from data collections, with stated justifications ranging from legal interpretations and paperwork burden to shifting policy priorities.
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Cancer Risk Is Still There, Even If the Data Isn't
August 20, 2026by Tai LungRead MoreCan you estimate someone's cancer risk from the air they breathe? Not exactly. Every person has different genetics, lifestyles, occupations, and environmental exposures that change over time. Air pollution varies from day to day, season to season, and even block to block. But scientists can make remarkably reliable estimates of a neighborhood’s cancer risk based on the type and amount of toxic air pollution.
After a year-long delay, this April, EPA released the latest air toxics data, which only included raw air data downloads. This year, for the first time in nearly 25 years, the air toxics data did not include cancer risk estimates.
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Take Action! Transformed-Medicaid Statistical Information System and More
August 14, 2026by Meghan MauryRead MoreProposed Rule of the Week: Transformed—Medicaid Statistical Information System (T-MSIS). CMS is revising T-MSIS, the national beneficiary- and claims-level Medicaid and CHIP database, to support three changes. States will report updated immigration-status information and whether coverage ended because of a status change or failed verification. States must also report monthly whether adults subject to the Medicaid work requirement met the 80-hour standard, their qualifying activities and exemptions, and whether they were disenrolled for noncompliance. Finally, CMS will add a code separately identifying per-member-per-month home-health payments, which are currently grouped under “other,” to improve oversight of those programs.
Comments due September 21.Every time the government makes a change to a survey or a form — or introduces a new survey or form — you have the right to weigh in on that decision. The Take Action! newsletter highlights surveys or forms the government is changing, renewing, or introducing. Click the links to tell the government what you think about the changes they are making.
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How Will Methodology Restrictions Affect Demographic and Economic Data?
August 12, 2026by Beth Jarosz, Jae June Lee, and Chris DickRead MoreOn June 4, 2026 the Department of Commerce issued a new order “Disclosure Avoidance for Statistical Products” (DAO 216-26) that limits the types of privacy protection methods that the Census Bureau and Bureau of Economic Analysis can use for their data products.
Data users noted early on that the order would likely affect data availability, and we are now beginning to learn the scope of that impact. For example, on August 4, 2026 the Census Bureau announced an indefinite delay in releasing data from the American Community Survey.