Information Sheet
June 2008
National Vital Statistics System
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About NCHS
National Vital Statistics System
National Death Index
Examples of NVSS Data
Challenges and Future Opportunities
About NCHS
The CDC's National Center for Health Statistics (NCHS) is the nation's
principal health statistics agency, providing data to identify and address
health issues. NCHS compiles statistical information to help guide public health
and health policy decisions.
Collaborating with other public and private health partners, NCHS employs a
variety of data collection mechanisms to obtain accurate information from
multiple sources. This process provides a broad perspective to help us
understand the population's health, influences on health, and health outcomes.
National Vital Statistics System
The National Vital Statistics System (NVSS) provides the nation's official
vital statistics data based on the collection and registration of birth and
death events at the state and local level. The NVSS provides the most complete
and continuous data available to public health officials at the national, state
and local levels, and in the private sector.
Vital statistics are a critical component of our national health information
system, allowing us to monitor progress toward achieving important health goals.
Examples of NVSS data:
- Teen births and birth rates
- Prenatal care and birth weight
- Risk factors for adverse pregnancy outcomes
- Infant mortality rates
- Leading causes of death
- Life expectancy
National Death Index
The National Death Index (NDI) is a component of the NVSS, a central
computerized index of death record information compiled from state data. The
NCHS, in collaboration with state offices, established the NDI as a resource to
facilitate epidemiological follow-up studies, and allow researchers to verify
death for individuals under study.
Examples of NVSS Data
The preliminary birth rate for U.S. teenagers aged 15-19 years rose
considerably in 2006, the first increase reported since 1991. Rates for
teenagers had been declining steadily since the 1991 peak and fell 34
percent between 1991 and 2005, before the trend reversed in 2006.
- Trends in rates by race and Hispanic origin varied somewhat. The largest
single-year increase was reported for non-Hispanic black teenagers, whose
overall rate rose 5 percent to 64 births per 1,000.
- Increases for other groups were 2 percent for Hispanic teenagers (to
83), 3 percent for non-Hispanic white teenagers (to 27), and 4 percent for
AI/AN teenagers (to 55). The birth rate for API teenagers was essentially
unchanged.
The prevention of teen births has important consequences for both the teen
mother and her infant. Teenagers are least likely to receive timely prenatal
care, more likely to smoke when pregnant, and more likely to have a low birth
weight infant.
- In 2005, life expectancy at birth was 77.8 years for all races, 78.3
years for whites, and 73.2 years for blacks.
Other findings include:
- The age-adjusted death rates for the following seven leading causes of
death increased significantly between 2004 and 2005: Chronic lower
respiratory diseases (5.1 percent), unintentional injuries (3.7 percent),
Alzheimer's disease (5.0 percent) Influenza and pneumonia (2.5 percent),
hypertension (3.9 percent) Parkinson's disease (4.9 percent) and homicide
(3.4 percent).
- The data show a reduction in deaths due to heart disease (2.7 percent),
cancer (1.1 percent), and stroke (6.8 percent) from 2004 to 2005. At least
part of the reduction in the rate for stroke (perhaps as much as one-third)
is due to changes in the coding rules.
- Mortality due to cataclysmic storms increased substantially from 2004
(63) to 2005 (874). This increase largely reflects deaths directly
attributed to Hurricane Katrina and Rita, and a tornado in Indiana in
November. Deaths reported to NCHS certified as due to Hurricane Katrina are
likely to underestimate the actual number of deaths attributable to the
storm. Deaths were attributed to a cataclysmic storm only if the storm was
explicitly reported as a cause of death on the death certificate.
- The infant mortality rate for all races was 6.87 infant deaths per 1,000
live births in 2005. Between 1958 and 2001, the infant mortality rate either
decreased or remained level each successive year.
- The infant mortality rate for non-Hispanic black infants is more than
double the rate for non-Hispanic white infants in 2005. The rate for
non-Hispanic white infants was 5.71 per 1,000 live births, compared with
14.28 for non-Hispanic black infants.
- Low birth weight (LBW) and preterm birth rates have each climbed about
20 percent since 1990, reaching levels in 2006 not seen for at least 25
years. The cesarean rate also reached a record high in 2006.
Challenges and Future
Opportunities
- Implement new national model certificates of birth, death and fetal
death events to improve data quality and update the content of these data
sources to reflect new needs, such as the changing classification of
race/ethnicity and new and emerging concerns in maternal and infant health
and public health.
- Modernize the technology infrastructure of the nation's vital
statistics system, moving states from outdated systems to web-based systems
integrated with other public health information systems, and re-engineering
the NCHS internal vital statistics processing system. This technology will
allow for rapid compilation and use of these critical data sources, as well
as for improved quality.
- In response to the Intelligence Reform and Terrorism Prevention Act,
improve the security of birth certificates through the development and
implementation of new minimum standards and State certification of
compliance with those standards.
Page Last Modified:
October 15, 2008