What to know
- An independent board of National Death Index (NDI) advisors reviews each application to ensure that data are protected against misuse.
- NDI advisors are a mix of state vital records and health statistics staff, as well as outside researchers and health scientists.
- Reviewers consider several criteria when approving applications.
Application review process
Researchers who want to use the National Death Index (NDI) must go through the rigorous application process and sign confidentiality documents. The independent NDI review board reviews every application. The board then approves or disapproves each project.
The review board of NDI advisors includes several state registrars. NDI advisors review each application to ensure that state data, including Personally Identifiable Information (PII), are protected against misuse.
The NDI application review process takes approximately 2–3 months.
Application review criteria
When reviewing NDI applications, several criteria are considered—
- Project's statistical purpose
- Project's study subjects' consent to share their data
- Project's plan for final disposition or retention of identifiable data
- Project's approval by an Institutional Review Board for the protection of human subjects
- Whether, how, and why the project proposes to provide third parties with access to identifiable data
- Whether the project will keep NDI data in a data registry
- Whether the project is a long-term study or surveillance
- Whether the project is a request for a repeated search (excluding reruns)
- Whether the project will be doing a follow-up with next-of-kin or health care providers.
NDI advisors have contributed to the evolution of these criteria. NDI advisers will continue revising these criteria, as needed, to address new issues or accommodate unique situations identified in future NDI applications.
NDI advisors
NDI advisors are a mix of state vital records and health statistics staff, as well as outside researchers and health scientists.