National Death Index Mortality Records 1979-2011

1979 through 2011 death record information from state vital statistics offices, compiled by the National Center for Health Statistics. This centralized database assists health investigators in mortality ascertainment by providing state of death, date of death, and death certificate numbers. Records are added annually, with data available approximately 12 months after the end of a calendar year.

Use Cases

• Link study participant records to state of death and date of death for mortality follow-up in epidemiological cohorts.
• Analyze temporal mortality trends from 1979 to 2011 using the date of death field.
• Obtain death certificate numbers via the NDI to request specific cause of death codes from state offices for medical research.

Strengths

• Contains death records spanning over three decades, from 1979 through 2011.
• Compiled from state vital statistics offices by the National Center for Health Statistics, an authoritative source.
• Updated annually with a consistent release schedule, ensuring ongoing utility for longitudinal studies.

Limitations

• Access is restricted solely for statistical purposes in medical and health research, not for legal, administrative, or public use.
• Specific data fields like cause of death or educational level are not directly included; they require a separate request to state offices.
• Data availability lags by approximately 12 months, so the most recent year available is not current.

Provenance

Source

National Center for Health Statistics (NCHS) via state vital statistics offices.

Collection Method

Centralized database compiled from death records on file in state offices.

Time Range

1979 through 2011, with annual additions.

Freshness

Annual updates, with data from a calendar year available approximately 12 months later.

Geography

United States, covering all states.