SPG Contract Services Available from SHADAC - State Health Access Data Assistance Center at the University of Minnesota

SHADAC provides general technical assistance to states in implementing their State Planning Grants. For more in-depth services, SHADAC is available to contract with individual grantees to provide direct services tailored to their specific needs. These contracted services include:

• Collection and Analysis of State-Level Data
    
• Analysis of National Survey Data for State Health Policy
    
• Targeted Policy Briefs

 To discuss your specific needs with a researcher, please contact SHADAC at 612-624-4802.

Collection and Analysis of State-Level Data

• Conduct State Surveys of Health Coverage
  Experts at SHADAC have developed the Coordinated State Coverage Survey (CSCS), a state-of-the-art survey instrument that may be used to determine state-level insurance coverage rates.  The CSCS is designed to save states time and resources by providing a high quality, tested survey instrument and is available to states free-of-charge. The CSCS will capture the data needed for nearly all of the HRSA SPG reporting requirements. SHADAC has the capacity to oversee and execute any or all phases of state surveys of health coverage, including questionnaire design, adapting the survey to meet state needs, consulting on sample design and weighting, arranging for a survey vendor and monitoring data collection, data cleaning and coding, data analysis and report writing.
   
• Replicate your State Household Survey as part of the SHADAC Survey Consortium
  SHADAC is organizing a survey consortium to provide states the opportunity to replicate their household surveys at a reduced cost.  To participate in the consortium, you must use the SHADAC Coordinated State Coverage Survey (CSCS) instrument and complete a minimum of 3,000 surveys in your state.  The benefit of the consortium would be to achieve an economy of scale, thus making the survey more affordable for grantees. We will only be able to make this available if three or more states agree to participate. 
    
• Update State Survey Estimates Using Data from the Current Population Survey (CPS)
  SHADAC can work with states to "update" their state survey data for a year when state surveys are not conducted. The CPS provides annual estimates that are state-representative; but the CPS has limitations for state policy work, which state-level surveys are designed to address. However, state survey data are not collected annually. Therefore, SHADAC proposes to use the up-to-date CPS data from a year when the state survey was not conducted to "update" state survey estimates of health insurance coverage characteristics by using information from the CPS on changes to relevant covariates of coverage over time.
    
• Small Area Estimation
  Many states are interested in detailed small area estimates of health insurance coverage as they manage and assess policy options for extending or maintaining coverage levels statewide. SHADAC sponsored a conference on small area estimation in June 2003.  Statisticians at SHADAC can derive model-based estimates of health insurance coverage at the county level for states.  
    
• Research on Health Disparities
  Across a wide variety of health outcome measures, racial and ethnic minorities in the US fare worse than their European American counterparts. Researchers at SHADAC designed and conducted a survey to assess the influence of access barriers (e.g., discrimination, lack of trust and confidence physicians, and access to quality interpreters) on the use of health care services among racial and ethnic minorities in Minnesota. SHADAC proposes to conduct similar studies for states interested in exploring racial and ethnic disparities in the use of preventive and other health services, as well as barriers to the use of these services.
    
• Fiscal Modeling of Policy Options under Consideration
  Many states are in the process of deciding which policy option(s) to pursue to increase access to health insurance coverage. Policy makers and constituents want to know what the policies and programs under consideration will cost and how many people will benefit from them. SHADAC will collaborate with national experts to develop models that predict the costs and benefits associated with different policy options. The complexity of the models and depth of the results will depend on the policies under consideration and the funds available for the project.
    
• Focus Groups with Stakeholders
  SHADAC can also provide assistance on qualitative research projects.  Many HRSA SPG states have complemented their survey work with focus groups and in-depth interviews. The anecdotes and stories these research activities provide help “put a face” to the plight of the uninsured and sometimes inspire new policy ideas not previously considered.  SHADAC will collaborate with national experts from the University of Minnesota to conduct focus groups and in-depth interviews with key stakeholders such as small business owners, low-income uninsured adults, and policymakers. SHADAC also has a working relationship with a vendor with experience in conducting focus groups in Spanish.

Analysis of National Survey Data for State Health Policy

• Distribution of Health Insurance
  Using national survey data, SHADAC will determine the distribution of private and public health coverage in your state.  The results of the analysis may be written up in a policy brief with color charts and graphs.
    
• Trends in Health Coverage
  SHADAC has up-to-date information on many of the latest health coverage programs and policies being pursued by states.  If your state is considering different policy options, SHADAC can provide issue briefs on how other states have designed and implemented similar programs.
    
• SCHIP Evaluations
  Several states have faced challenges meeting the SCHIP annual reporting requirements.  SHADAC can provide consultation and analysis of existing national data to demonstrate state reductions in the number of uninsured children.

Targeted Policy Briefs

• Research Synthesis
  SHADAC can develop a synthesis of the current literature to describe research that has been done on state health policies and programs of interest. These synthesis reports provide an economical and informative alternative when primary data collection is not an option; they can also provide the basis for a state health policy research agenda.
    
• Innovative State Programs
  In the face of budget crises, numerous states are trying new approaches to expanding health coverage. SHADAC can write policy briefs that describe the structure and implementation of these initiatives, highlighting challenges as well as successes in meeting program goals.