You, or a member of your family, may have a chance to take part in an important national health survey that provides information to guide the nation's health policies. The National Center for Health Statistics  (NCHS) and National Immunization Program (NIP), a part of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, are responsible for the National Immunization Survey (NIS).  This study has provided the public with important statistics about childhood immunization and other health related topics since 1994.  The contractor, Abt Associates Inc., collects the data for the NIS.

Each winter, as part of the NIS, the National Adult Immunization Survey (NAIS) is conducted. This study collects information on influenza and pneumonia immunizations received by people aged 50 and older. It also collects information about why this age group may not have received their flu or pneumonia shots. The data from this study will be analyzed by researchers at the National Immunization Program and will be used to help improve the delivery of immunizations to the older population in the U.S.

In addition to the NIS, NCHS also conducts several other health surveys of households or families with young children.  The National Immunization Survey (NIS), The National Adult Immunization Survey, The National Survey of Children's Health (NSCH) and The National Asthma Survey (NAS) collect information on the immunization coverage and health care of children and adults across the United States. These surveys are a collaborative effort between the National Center for Health Statistics and the National Immunization Program. Both agencies are part of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. These surveys are sponsored, in part, by the American Academy of Pediatrics, the Maternal and Child Health Bureau of the Health Resources and Services Administration, and the CDC's National Center for Environmental Health.

These surveys are conducted by telephone. Telephone numbers are randomly generated by computer from all over the country. A letter from the Director of the National Center for Health Statistics is then mailed in advance to many households. These surveys are not conducted in each household selected. Rather, the surveys are assigned to households using a random selection procedure and based on the ages and other characteristics of children living in the household. Nobody is asked to complete more than two surveys, and most families with children are asked to complete only one.

National Immunization Survey
Data collection began in 1994.
The study has two parts:
1. A household telephone survey. This survey asks questions about childhood immunization for children 19-35 months of age and requests parental permission for contacting children's vaccination providers. Data are used primarily to monitor immunization coverage in the preschool population in 78 nonoverlapping geographic areas.
2. A survey of vaccination providers. This survey of doctors and other vaccination providers is conducted for study participants who have provided consent for this phase of the study.

Overview of the study in English or Spanish

Answers to frequently asked questions about the household telephone survey or the survey of vaccination providers.

For additional information, please visit the National Immunization Survey Web site at Abt Associates Inc., the study's contractor.

Data are released in the Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report, published by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, as well as other publications and journals.  Microdata files containing unidentifiable data from the interviews are available for public health research.

National Adult Immunization Survey

Data collection began in 2003 with people ages 65 years and older.

Data collection in 2004 will include people ages 50 years and older.

This study asks questions about flu shots and pneumonia shots, and the reasons why some people may not have received these immunizations.

For additional information, see answers to Frequently Asked Questions for Respondents to the National Adult Immunization Survey.

Data collection will occur in 2003.

This survey examines the physical and emotional health of children 0-17 years of age.  Special emphasis is placed on the factors that may relate to the well-being of children, including medical homes, family interactions, parental health, school and after-school experiences, and safe neighborhoods.  Results from this survey will be summarized in various journals and other publications, and will be sent to pediatricians around the country.

National Survey of Children's Health website.

Data collection will occur in 2003.

This survey examines the health, socioeconomic, behavioral, and environmental predictors that relate to better control of asthma.  This study will also help to characterize the content of care and health care experiences of persons with asthma.

National Asthma Survey website

This Web site is for information purposes only, and is not meant to substitute for any information that the interviewer will provide to survey participants.

This page last reviewed August 25, 2004