Codes and Frequencies
Description
For persons with at least one private health insurance plan for which they can choose any doctor (HIP1MDPIC = 1), HIP1MDLIS indicates if the plan provides the option of choosing a doctor from a preferred or select list at a lower cost. For all years, persons with single service insurance plans (such as those which paid only for accidents) were not asked this question.
For 1993-1996, details about the characteristics of insurance plans (such as HIP1MDLIS) reflect plans for any family member in the household. In order to determine if the person (rather than someone else in the family) was covered by this plan, analysts should use the variable HI1PCOV (Health Insurance Plan 1: Person's Coverage Status), which indicates whether the person was covered by the plan.
Thus, information about whether the person had private insurance that was currently carried through an employer or union may appear in multiple variables: HI1EMP, through HI4EMP. Likewise, the complementary variables HI1PCOV through HI4PCOV indicate coverage status for the individual under each plan.
Information was collected on up to four plans per family; for 2004 forward, only data for plans one and two are publicly available.
Users may also want to see HIP2MDLIS, HIP3MDLIS and HIP4MDLIS. In addition, the IPUMS NHIS created the variable HIPMDLISR, which indicates whether the person had any plan that provided a preferred list of doctors at a lower cost.
Persons with three or more plans have a "yes" response to the HIPRIVGT2 variable (available for 2004 forward). Very few persons (less than 0.2 percent of the total number of individuals with private health insurance per year for 2004 to 2009) had more than two private insurance plans. Additional information for the third and fourth plans for a person is available through a Data Research Center.
For 1997 forward, responses for respondents who mistakenly indicated their private coverage status were edited by the NCHS. This might be shown, for example, by a mismatch between the verbatim name of an insurance plan and the type of insurance coverage the person selected from a list of categories on a card. The frequencies provided in HIP1MDLIS reflect responses in which private insurance was verified though editing on plan names. Users are strongly encouraged to refer to HIPRIVATEE for more information.
Comparability
For all years, respondents who answered the question for HIP1MDSP had private health insurance excluding single service plans, or plans that paid for only one type of service. While the definition of private health insurance included single service for 1993 to 1996, those with such plans did not receive the question for HIP1MDLIS.
This variable is completely comparable for 1998 forward and is completely comparable for 1993 to 1996. Because of the editing process that occurred from 1998 forward that verified the accuracy of report for private insurance coverage, users may want to avoid comparing the surveys for prior to 1997 with those that came after. See HIPRIVATEE for more details on data editing.
Universe
- 1993: Persons in quarters 3 and 4 who were covered by a private health insurance plan (whose health insurance plan only pays for a variety of service, who didn't know what was paid for or that this information was not ascertained) who were able to choose ANY doctor through their health insurance plan.
- 1994-1996: Persons who were covered by a private health insurance plan (whose health insurance plan only pays for a variety of service, who didn't know what was paid for or that this information was not ascertained) who were able to choose ANY doctor through their health insurance plan.
- 1998-2018: Persons with at least one private health insurance plan who may choose any doctor for plan 1.
Availability
- 1993-1996, 1998-2018
Weights
- 1994-1996, 1998-2018 : PERWEIGHT
- 1993 : SAMPWEIGHT
