On March 31, 2025, NIH requested that the following language be added to this website:

This repository is under review for potential modification in compliance with Administration directives.

Disclosure Limitation Review

Guidelines for Maintaining Respondent Privacy and Anonymity

A contractual obligation of researchers who qualify for access to restricted data from the Health and Retirement Study is to maintain respondent anonymity. Disclosure limitation review is the method by which HRS can prevent disclosure of confidential information, reduce the likelihood of respondent re-identification, provide useful data to researchers, and ensure the results of the review process are acceptable to both the researcher and the provider(s) of the restricted data.

Methods Used to Protect Confidentiality in HRS Data Products

  • All HRS public and restricted files are directly or indirectly based on sample survey methodology
  • Public file variables containing indirect identifiers such as industry, occupation, and geographic information have been collapsed
  • Microdata files derived from SSA administrative data (e.g., Earnings, Benefits, and SSI records) have been subjected to rounding and top-coding in accordance with the governing Memorandum of Understanding
  • Direct respondent identifiers such as name, address, SSN, Medicare/Medicaid identifier, place of birth, etc. have been removed from all public microdata products, and limitations have been placed on access to geographic detail information
  • Data items at the respondent level related to sample design, such as segment, and line, are not distributed to the public

Protecting Confidentiality During Analysis

  • Researchers should only publish statistical summary values (frequency tabulations, magnitude tabulations, means, variances, regression coefficients, and correlation coefficients) that do not permit the identification of any individual person, family, household, employer, or benefit provider
  • File(s) that result from any merge process which includes restricted data input should be treated as restricted
  • Researchers should not publish the results of any analysis that can potentially identify respondents, either directly or inferentially
  • Researchers are prohibited from publishing results that identify geographic areas below the level of Census Division
  • When producing tabulations for distribution, the following guidelines should be employed:
    • Cell size suppression: cell sizes for restricted data may not be below 11; A value of zero does not violate the minimum cell size policy. In addition, no cell can be reported that allows a value of 1 to 10 to be derived from other reported cells or information. For example the use of percentages or other mathematical formulas that, in combination with other reported information, result in the display of a cell containing a value of 1 to 10 are prohibited.
    • Minimum and maximum values are not permitted to be reported.
  • Certain types of cross-category merges (e.g., State-level geographic data with Social Security Administrative data) are not allowed under traditional restricted licensing agreements. Geographic information may only be used in conjunction with files derived from Social Security administrative data (1) after executing a MiCDA Data Enclave data use agreement and (2) obtaining written permission from the HRS Project Director
  • Analysis results containing merged area data based on geographic information may be reported if there is no direct identification of geographic areas, or if geographic areas are reported using the same grouping characteristics as public files. When using geocodes to link respondent information to area data, make sure that respondent privacy is not inadvertently compromised by reporting unique area data values (e.g., including census tracts with unusual environmental characteristics in data analysis reports)
  • Researchers may wish to recode or collapse certain high visibility variables such as Cause of Death or Medical Condition before reporting analysis results using such variables
  • All published research resulting from restricted data analysis must be reviewed according to the terms of the Agreement For Use of Restricted Data From the Health and Retirement Study

Disclosure Rules for Presentations, Working Papers, and any Type of Publication:

Researchers must agree to exclude from any type of working paper, publication or presentation, the following information:

  • Listing or description of data at the individual or household level; microdata.

  • Listing, description, or identification by number, by name, or by descriptive information of any restricted geospatial data that show any geographic area below the Census Division level, including place, tract or tracts, zip code, county, state, etc.

  • Maps, scatterplots, or graphs with any values, labels, or features (such as landmarks, road networks, original tract shape or physical features) that allow restricted geospatial data (e.g., place, tracts, zip codes, counties) to be identified or that show any geographic area below the Census Division level, including place, tract, block group, block, ZIP code, city, county or state.

  • Summary statistics (including frequency distributions), tabulations, or graphs (including scatterplots and maps) that have cell sizes under 11 observations.

Export and Import

Materials can be requested for export from or import to the MiCDA and LINKAGE enclaves. All requests are subject to review. Researchers should read and understand export and import procedures before submitting material for review.