Newsletter Archive
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Register for Rapid Response Data Briefing: National Health Interview Survey (NHIS) Redesign
September 23, 2026Read MoreDid you know that NCHS has proposed a redesign of the National Health Interview Survey (NHIS)?
Starting in 2027, several key topics would rotate off the survey, while some new content would rotate on. Then, beginning in 2028–2029, NCHS plans a broader redesign to shift from primarily in-person interviews to an approach using web, mail, and in-person follow-up, with a shorter, less structured questionnaire.
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Take Action! Reporting Portal for Civil Rights Violations and More
September 19, 2026by Meghan MauryRead MoreForm of the Week: Reporting Portal for Civil Rights Violations. Despite a Federal Register title incorrectly referring to this listing as the “International Terrorism Victim Expense Reimbursement Program,” in this listing DOJ is actually revising its online Portal for Reporting Civil Rights Violations. Notably, the revised portal adds Second Amendment rights as a category of civil-rights complaints, reflecting DOJ’s unusual new treatment of alleged restrictions on gun ownership and carrying as a Civil Rights Division enforcement priority.
Comments due September 25.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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Why Seemingly Arcane Process Changes to the Decennial Census Would be Catastrophic for All Americans
September 15, 2026by Meeta Anand, Beth Jarosz, and Chris DickRead MoreOn September 10, 2026 the Census Bureau posted a notice in the Federal Register titled “Decennial Census of the Population of Americans; Proposed Residence Criteria and Proposed Regulations for Demographic Questions.” Despite the stale-sounding title, this proposed rule upends nearly 250 years of history, ignores Constitutional mandates, will make life harder for all Americans, and proposes to codify all of those changes into the Code of Federal Regulations (rather than, as is traditional, Census Bureau policy).
The goal of every census is to “count everyone once, only once, and in the right place.” Not only is that catchphrase memorable, it is the outgrowth of the mandates of the 14th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution regarding apportionment. In addition to being the foundation of political representation, the population count in each decennial census is the common denominator in nearly every aspect of public life. Census counts are used for emergency preparation and disaster response. They are used to plan for schools, roads, and hospitals. They are used to track crime rates and to monitor public health. They are used to understand whether we are making progress in alleviating historic patterns of discrimination. They are used to understand employment patterns and economic opportunity. They are used by businesses to understand their workforce and customer base in order to make sound investments. These examples are just the tip of the iceberg—a comprehensive list could go on for pages (in fact the Census Bureau published a list of 50 common uses).
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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.