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Why Collect Race, Ethnicity, and Primary Language
National/State Reporting Requirements
An increasing number of federal policies emphasize the need for obtaining race, ethnicity, and language information. According to the Commonwealth Fund report, Racial, Ethnic, and Primary Language Data Collection in the Health Care System: An Assessment of Federal Policies and Practices (2001) by Perot and Youdelman, these major federal policies govern racial, ethnic, and primary language data collection and reporting:
- Office of Management and Budget (OMB) revised standards (1997)
- Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996
- Initiative to Eliminate Racial and Ethnic Disparities in Health (1998)
- Consumer Bill of Rights and Responsibilities (1997)
- Benefits Improvement and Protection Act (2000)
- Report of U.S. Commission on Civil Rights, The Health Care Challenge: Acknowledging Disparity, Confronting Discrimination, and Ensuring Equity (1999)
- Executive Orders 13166 "Improving Access to Services for Persons with Limited English Proficiency" and 13125 "Improving the Quality of Life of Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders" (2000)
- Minority and Health Disparities Research and Education Act of 2000
- Department of Health and Human Services Title VI Regulations (1964)
- Department of Health and Human Services Inclusion Policy (1997)
- Healthy People 2010 (2000)
- Culturally and Linguistically Appropriate Services (2000)
- HHS Data Council Activities (ongoing)
- National Committee on Vital Health Statistics (ongoing)
Below is a list of 22 states that indicated they require the reporting of race/ethnicity:
| Arizona California Connecticut Delaware Florida Georgia |
Louisiana Maryland Massachusetts Missouri New Hampshire New Jersey |
New Mexico New York Pennsylvania Rhode Island South Carolina |
Tennessee Texas Vermont Virginia Wisconsin |
Source: Medstat and National Association of Health Data Organizations. "Nationwide Data Inventory of Statewide Encounter-Level Data Collection Activities." Report to the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ). AHRQ Contract No. 290-00-0004. April, 2003.
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