The vision process began in 1999 as a partnership between the National Committee on Vital and Health Statistics, the National Center for Health Statistics, and the HHS Data Council. The first phase involved a systematic effort to obtain input from experts from various related fields; State and local officials; data users; and other interested parties. Steps included:

Commissioned papers that provide historical perspective on the health statistics system, describe models developed in other countries, and draw lessons from case studies on the availability of health statistics to address recent health policy questions. Five papers were commissioned by the National Committee on Vital and Health Statistics. You may view a more detailed description of each and (when available) read summaries or abstracts of completed papers or

Discussion groups with experts in public health, health policy, and statistics (March 1999, May 1999), a working session with leaders in health statistics (March 1999) and multiple discussion groups with NCHS staff, (October/November 1999).

Learning from broad, future-oriented discussions regarding the "National Health Information Infrastructure" undertaken by the National Committee on Vital and Health Statistics’

Consultative sessions at health and health information professional meetings

Town Meeting at the annual meeting of the National Association for Public Health Statistics and Information Systems (NAPHSIS), Las Vegas, NV, June 1999
Open sessions at the National Conference on Health Statistics, Washington, DC, August 1999
Discussion at a joint NCHS/AHCPR session at the annual meeting of the Association for Health Services Research, Chicago, IL, June 1999
Multiple sessions at Joint Assessment Initiative/State Health Center for Health Statistics meeting, Atlanta, GA, September 1999

Forums for input from local and State users of health statistics, in Harrisburg, PA, November 1999, Albuquerque, NM, March 2000, and New Orleans, LA, March 2000.

A workshop, "Toward a Health Statistics System for the 21st Century," convened by the Committee on National Statistics, National Academy of Sciences, Washington, DC, November 1999. View/Download PDF (19KB) workshop agenda; to view or order a copy of the report, "Toward a Health Statistics System for the 21st Century: Summary of Workshop" click here.

Mechanisms (such as Web pages) to keep individuals and organizations informed on progress and drafts, to foster ongoing feedback, and to identify specific issues for further discussion at forums.

Phase Two: Identifying themes and components and drafting an interim report
The second phase involved synthesis of the information gathered in phase one into an interim report outlining major health information needs, priorities, and how these needs can be met.

Key Milestones: An interim report was released in spring 2000.

Phase Three: Conducting hearings and preparing a draft vision report
The NCVHS convened regional hearings (summer/fall) to obtain feedback on the interim report (themes, components, issues, and priorities). Feedback was obtained from key external organizations, within HHS through the Data Council, and through the Web, listserv, or newsletters. Based on these hearings and other feedback, a draft vision report was prepared. Click here for more information.

Key Milestones: A draft vision report was completed by fall/winter 2001.

Phase Four: Finalizing the vision report and related documents
NCHS, NCVHS, and the Data Council solicited broad input on the draft vision report, and based on comments, finalized a vision report for wide distribution. NCHS and NCVHS plan to pursue the publication of an edited volume on 21st century health statistics, including commissioned papers, synthesis of discussion groups and working sessions, and key workshop presentations, and will develop approaches to assuring wide visibility of the volume and vision report.

Key Milestones:
A final vision report was developed fall 2002.
An edited volume will be published in 2003.

Phase Five: Planning in health statistics programs
With a broad vision articulated and supporting materials published, the focus of efforts will shift to individual agencies, such as NCHS, other HHS agencies, State Centers for Health Statistics, and others, to determine how the vision can be used to help guide program plans and initiatives.