Developing a Restricted-Use Data Analysis System (R-DAS) for the National Survey on Drug Use and Health

• Activity Number: 642
• Type: Invited
• Date/Time: Thursday, August 4, 2011 : 10:30 AM to 12:20 PM
• Sponsor: Section on Government Statistics
• Author(s): Jonaki Bose*+ and Joe Gfroerer and Art Hughes and Mike Jones
• Companies: Center for Behavioral Health Statistics and Quality, SAMHSA and Center for Behavioral Health Statistics and Quality and Center for Behavioral Health Statistics and Quality and Center for Behavioral Health Statistics and Quality
• Keywords: disclosure ; confidentiality ; R-DAS ; restricted-use data ; online analysis system

Abstract

The Center for Behavioral Health Statistics and Quality (CBHSQ) releases a public-use file (PUF) for the National Survey on Drug Use and Health (NSDUH). However, the NSDUH PUF does not contain certain key variables of analytic interest such as state or detailed race-ethnicity codes. CBHSQ has been involved in a multi-year process to establish an online restricted-use data analysis system (R-DAS) where the data used to produce estimates is restricted use and confidential, but the output is not. Even though users of an R-DAS are unable to work with the actual microdata, the advantage is that since the results generated by such a system are public use, users of the system do not have to be designated as agents under CIPSEA (or follow similar procedures covered by other laws). This paper discusses what motivated CBHSQ to develop such a system, the developmental process, characteristics and limitations of the system and lessons learnt.