State Experiences Linking Medicaid Data With Birth Certificates and Other Data Sources

Area of Science:

• Public Health
• Health Services Research
• Data Linkage

Background:

• States increasingly link Medicaid claims with birth certificates and other data sources.
• These data linkages are crucial for informing maternal and child health (MCH) programs and policies.

Purpose of the Study:

• To assess the current landscape of Medicaid claims data linkage for MCH research across states.
• To understand the scope, methods, and experiences related to these data linkages.

Main Methods:

• A structured literature review identified studies using linked Medicaid data for MCH research.
• An inventory of state-level linkage efforts was developed.
• Semistructured discussions were held with representatives from nine states with established data linkages.

Main Results:

• Twenty-two states utilized linked Medicaid data in 45 peer-reviewed MCH articles.
• Thirty-three states and territories publicly report on Medicaid data linkages, totaling 39 states with such efforts.
• Linkages often originate from specific research questions but expand to broader applications, with most states allowing external researcher access.

Conclusions:

• Overcoming barriers to data linkage requires additional resources, technical assistance, and best practice identification.
• Interagency collaboration is essential for a coordinated and consolidated approach to Medicaid data linkage across states.