Data are individual pieces of information collected in a systematic fashion. Statistics are the results of interpretation of data. The sources on this page are good general sources to find both data and statistics about the costs and economics of all aspects of health care.
It is not possible to list all the sources of data and statistics needed by health economics researchers on this guide (the subject area is quite diverse). Explore the other data and statistics-focused guides created by the library, and contact the library for more help.
After data is collected, the owner of the data can choose how to make this available. Some owners allow you to download their data set, upload it into your statistical software, and manipulate the data to create your own statistics. Other owners have created online dashboards or portals that allow you to manipulate data and create statistics directly on their website. The sources below include both downloadable data and online data dashboards. Many federal agencies will make some portions of a data set available through a dashboard and require downloading of a data set to investigate other questions.
Typically, data is made available within a year of collection. Data from about a year ago is considered as current as possible for research and planning purposes.
In addition to providing statistics, these sites may include access to some data dashboards where you can manipulate data to create new statistics. Typically statistics are available a few years after data is collected (it takes time to manipulate, consider, write a report, and publish it). Statistics from 2 or 3 years ago may be the most current available.