The purpose of this Workshop is to facilitate the use of the Medical Expenditure Panel Survey Household Component (MEPS HC) public use data files by the health services research community. To meet this objective participants are provided with a general overview of the MEPS, a description of available data files, information about on-line data tools, and some examples of the type of research projects the MEPS data can support.. The MEPS is a vital national data resource designed to continually provide health service researchers, policymakers, health care administrators, businesses, and others with timely, comprehensive information about health care use and costs in the United States. This workshop will provide the knowledge necessary to formulate research plans utilizing the various MEPS HC files and linkage capabilities.