The Maine Health Data Organization has, in accordance with Rule Chapter 120: Release of Data to the Public, instituted a process for the purpose of notifying users and providers of health care data when the MHDO receives a request for health data and accepts that request. In addition to sending electronic notification to interested parties and to providers that are responsible for the submission of the data, we provide the summary page of the ten most recent data requests below. If you are interested in seeing requests prior to the last on this page, you will find them here: https://mhdo.maine.gov/dataRequests_Archived.htm
For all data requests, the data providers or other interested parties may submit comments related to the data request to the Executive Director. To be considered, comments must be received by the Executive Director in writing or by electronic notification no later than thirty business days after the initial posting of the data request on the MHDO web site. If the Executive Director determines that (a.) the comments received are of significant enough importance to delay the release of data and/or (b.) additional information is required from the requesting party to address the comments; then the data shall not be released until the additional information has been received from the requesting party and an additional review is conducted by the Executive Director or the MHDO Data Release Subcommittee, as applicable, to ensure that the requesting party conforms to all applicable requirements of this chapter.
The Executive Director will bring all comments received from the data providers and or other interested parties for the release of Level III Data to the MHDO Data Release Subcommittee for consideration.
Individuals who want to opt out of a specific Level III data request may do so by completing this MHDO Choice Disclosure Form no later than 30 business days after the initial posting of the data request. If you opt out of Level III data requests, you will remain opted out unless you choose to opt back in via completion of the MHDO Choice Disclosure Form.
NOTE: If you would like to be notified when new data requests are posted, please email your request.
| Request # | Requesting Party and Title | Affiliation | Date Posted | Comment Close Date | Specific Data Request | Purpose of Request Benefits to the Citizens of Maine Public Reporting Plans |
Released Denied Withdrawn |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2024020903 | Tripp, Merica | Maine DHHS, Rural Health & Primary Care | 2/12/2025 | 3/27/2025 | Custom Level II MHDO Data Extract Q2 2023 – Q1 2024 Medical Claims, Medical Eligibility, Dental Claims, Dental Eligibility including City/ZIP, DOB, FIPS Codes and Practitioner Identifiable Data. | This data request seeks to add additional years of MHDO data (Q2 2023 – Q1 2024) to previously approved data request number 2018020501. This data will be used solely in support of the ME DHHS objectives related to their contracted work with JSI to provide "Health Professional Shortage Area Designation Assistance and Primary Care Workforce Data Management and Analysis". This work involves two separate but related components. 1) The evaluation, submission, & maintenance of federal Health Professional Shortage Area (HPSA) designations to the federal Health Resources and Services Admin, Bureau of Health Workforce. These designations, which cover medical, dental, & mental health professions, are dictated by federal regulations that govern how areas of need are identified and defined. HPSA designation provides access to a range of federal resources to support primary care access and provider workforce recruitment and retention in the designated areas. 2) To conduct a broad based and inclusive analysis of primary care workforce capacity and accessibility, and to examine the patient access patterns in support of service area definition. The claims data can be used in support of both objectives. For federal HPSA designation, the regulations establish that a certain number of Medicaid claims provided can be equated to a provider Full Time Equivalent (FTE) for use in the Population-to-Provider FTE ratio which determines eligibility. Beyond Medicaid, the other claims data classifications will help to validate the location of providers in the state overall-another federal requirement and a useful process for analysis overall. We will further use the analysis of patient origin town/zip, in combination with the destination (provider) town/zip to examine accessibility to primary care services in terms of drive time minutes for the population in the area, as well as the frequency of service utilization. Benefit to Citizens of Maine: Use of this data will result in more accurate and comprehensive analysis of HPSA eligibility and the definition of more representative service areas. The likelihood of obtaining or retaining HPSA designations will be increased, while the level of effort and accuracy of the data will be greatly decreased compared to the traditional process of surveying providers to obtain their estimated of hours and service to the Medicaid population. | |
| 2024121601 | Harakall, Maryann | ME CDC | 1/24/2025 | 3/10/2025 | MHDO Level II Q3 2024 – Q4 2025 Hospital Inpatient Encounter Data including City/ZIP, DOB, FIPS Code and Race & Ethnicity | This data request seeks to add an additional year of MHDO data to previously approved data request number 2023010301. In 2021 Maine received funds to become part of the National Alliance for Innovation on Maternal Health (AIM). This ongoing initiative involves engaging hospitals in the implementation of patient safety bundles designed to improve the quality of health care provided to women around the time of pregnancy with the overall goal to reduce maternal mortality and morbidity. Currently, 49 US states are enrolled in the AIM initiative. As part of this initiative, states are asked to provide administrative data on severe maternal morbidity by hospital (de-identified) to monitor progress on QI efforts. Maine selected to focus on maternal hypertension as the state's first QI initiative. There are currently 20 Maine birthing hospitals currently participating in the project. Maine people will benefit from a data-driven approach to implementing best practices related to reducing maternal morbidity and improving care for pregnant people with severe hypertension. MHDO data will allow for ongoing monitoring of maternal morbidity to assess the effectiveness of the implementation of these evidence-based practices in Maine hospitals. | |
| 2024120601 | Trachimowicz, Gina | Maine Neonatology Associates | 1/2/2025 | 2/14/2025 | A subset of the MHDO CY 2023 Maine Surprise Billing Template, limited to the median allowed amounts for neonatal & newborn CPT codes, by zip code and rating area. | This data request seeks to add an additional year of MHDO data (CY 2023) to previously approved data request number 2023091501. Maine Neonatology Associates (MNA) is a group of specialists providing 24/7/365 newborn coverage and services within the NICU at the Barbara Bush Children’s Hospital (BBCH) at Maine Medical Center (the only level 4 NICU in the state) and Mercy Northern Light Hospital. In 2021, the NICU at BBCH admitted approximately 1000 infants, showing it has the full market share of infants requiring specialized care in the state and region. MNA will utilize the MHDO data to create fair and honest fee structures that align with the intention of the No Surprises Act, aiming to avoid payment disputes and improve contract negotiations with out-of-network insurers. This will ultimately benefit many infants and families in Maine. | |
| 2024120401 | Manchester, Chloe Epidemiologist | Maine Center for Disease Control and Prevention | 1/2/2025 | 2/14/2025 | MHDO Ad Hoc Request – Q1 2023 through Q2 2024 adult Hepatitis A & B vaccinations by Maine county. | This data request seeks to add an additional year of MHDO data to previously approved data request number 2023062801. Maine CDC Division of Infectious Disease Surveillance is requesting MHDO to produce aggregate data on adult hepatitis A and B vaccination administration across the state from Q1 2023 - Q2 2024 to better identify areas of low vaccine coverage and view trends over time. Vaccination records for adults are not widely available because there is no universal adult vaccination program in Maine as exists for children. Therefore, all-payer claims data is a way to get insight into adult vaccination administration trends and coverage. These data will allow the Division of Infectious Disease Surveillance to collaborate with agency partners, community organizations, health care facilities and hospital systems to improve access to and uptake of hepatitis A and B vaccines. | |
| 2024041902 | Beckner, Chiara | Central Maine Healthcare | 9/16/2024 | 10/29/2024 | MHDO Level II Q1 2020 - Q4 2024 Hospital Inpatient and Q1 2023 – Q4 2024 Hospital Outpatient Encounter Data including City/ZIP, DOB, Anonymous Payer Name/ID and Integrated Cancer-Incidence Registry Data. | The data will be used with other states' public health data to help healthcare providers increase the quality of care they provide to their patients by effectively benchmarking their quality, safety, satisfaction, cost and utilization to their peers. In addition, the data will be used to create a demographically based inpatient healthcare demand model for the Central Maine Medical Center and for the Lewiston/Auburn region of Maine. Benefit to the Citizens of Maine: The citizens of Maine will benefit through CMMC being able to more accurately target and align its investments in programmatic, human, and facility resources to the projected needs of the Central Maine communities it serves. The anonymized payer category information will be used to sufficiently understand the patient population and demographics that Central Maine Healthcare serves to best align service offerings and improve the health of the people and communities served. This will result in better planning for the residents of Maine by understanding care delivery factors and addressing gaps around healthcare equity. The MHDO's integrated Cancer-Incidence Registry Data will be used to align and inform the oncologic service offerings within the Central Maine Region including but not limited to cancer surgical offerings, screenings and treatment options. | |
| 2024082001 | Senechal, Katherine | State of Maine Office of Affordable Health Care | 9/11/24 | 10/24/24 | MHDO Level II Q1 2017 – Q2 2025 Inpatient and Outpatient Hospital Encounter Data, Medical Claims, Medical Eligibility, Pharmacy Claims, Pharmacy Eligibility including City/ZIP, Race & Ethnicity, Practitioner Identifiers, Payer Name/ID, De-identified Person Directory, Hospital Healthcare Quality Data (CMS Measures) and Provider Directory. | In 2021, the Maine legislature created the Office of Affordable Health Care (OAHC) when it enacted P.L. 2021 Chapter 459, Section 3. Among other duties, the establishing legislation directs the office to analyze health care cost growth and spending trends, including correlation to quality and consumer experience, and to develop proposals to improve the affordability, quality, and efficiency of health care in Maine. This project builds upon the previously authorized MHDO data request 2024020502 and seeks to further analyze trends in payor and provider health care spending, health care consumption, and the costs of providing health care using MHDO data beginning in 2017 through the most current data available from MHDO. This request allows OAHC to directly access MHDO data via the NORC Data Enclave. The Office, mandated to identify drivers of health care costs and quality, requires Payer Name/ID information to understand differences in healthcare payments and coverage, allowing for analysis of policy impacts on specific payors and connecting observed trends to policy decisions, demographics, and other factors such as health insurance coverage for services. This project will advance the aims of the office by offering data driven insights into drivers of health care spending, obstacles to affordability, and care quality for Maine residents by creating summaries of aggregated data in proactive or responsive work products for the Maine legislature and other stakeholders. These products may include annual reports, legislative inquiries, and presentations for the public and or the Advisory Council on Affordable Health Care. | |
| 2024051303 | Owens, Pamela | Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality | 8/28/2024 | 10/10/2024 | MHDO Level II CY 2023 - CY 2024 Inpatient and Outpatient Hospital Encounter Data including City/ZIP, DOB, FIPS Code and Race & Ethnicity. | The Healthcare Cost and Utilization Project (HCUP) is a family of healthcare databases and related software tools and products developed through a Federal-State-Industry partnership and sponsored by the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ). HCUP databases bring together the data collection efforts of State data organizations, hospital associations, private data organizations, and the Federal government to create a national information resource of encounter-level healthcare data. These national databases enable research on a broad range of health policy issues, including cost and quality of health services, medical practice patterns, access to healthcare programs, and outcomes of treatments at the national, State, and local market levels. The purpose of this project is to continue to integrate MHDO de-identified hospital encounter data with HCUP datasets to enhance healthcare research and analysis. These data will continue to provide insights into hospital care trends, patient safety, and healthcare costs, supporting evidence-based policy decisions and improving healthcare outcomes for Maine residents and nationally. | |
| 2024080201 | Matusovich, Becca | Children's Oral Health Network | 8/12/2024 | 9/24/2024 | MHDO Level II CY 2023 Dental Claims, Dental Eligibility, Medical Claims, Medical Eligibility including City/ZIP, DOB, FIPS Codes, Race & Ethnicity and Anonymous Payer Name/ID. | This data request seeks to add an additional year of MHDO data (CY 2023) to previously approved data request number 2023062101. A copy of the 2022 Maine COHN Data Brief can be found here https://www.mainecohn.org/what-we-do/data. The Children’s Oral Health Network (COHN), formerly the Partnership for Children’s Oral Health, is a broad network of oral health stakeholders who are collaborating toward a shared mission: eradicating dental disease among Maine children. A key piece of this work is to strengthen the capacity of Maine’s oral health service delivery systems to reach all children in Maine with effective preventive and restorative dental care. To create a shared understanding of the strengths and challenges of the current delivery system, we propose an analysis of all-payer claims data that will provide a snapshot of current patterns in utilization of preventive and restorative dental services and look at variations in utilization and cost across payer/insurer type, age group, location/geography, provider type, and setting of care. Additionally, summary data will be reported on children's dental health use to the Kids Count Project, as well as the statewide Shared Community Health Needs Assessment and Public Health District data profiles. This project will benefit the people of Maine because it will help to build shared understanding of ways in which the current delivery system is able to meet the needs of Maine children, and what gaps remain. This will allow for collaborative planning to align resources and coordinate efforts to fill the gaps and increase children’s access to recommended oral health care. | |
| 2024072403 | Ahrens, Katherine, Associate Research Professor | University of Southern Maine | 08/12/2024 | 09/24/2024 | MHDO Level II CY 2009 - CY 2023 Hospital Inpatient Encounter data, including City/Zip, DOB, FIPS codes, Race & Ethnicity and Integrated Vital Statistics Birth and Death data. | This request is an update to previously approved MHDO data request #2024043003, seeking to include Integrated Vital Statistics Birth and Death data. We aim to examine various pregnancy outcomes in Maine. The specific research questions are: What are the trends in delivery and newborn hospitalizations in the state of Maine? Do these trends vary by level of rurality of patient's residence or other patient characteristics, and what are the co-morbidities, pregnancy outcomes, and healthcare utilization associated with delivery and newborn hospitalizations in Maine? We will estimate the trends and characteristics that make up delivery and newborn hospitalizations in the state of Maine. Benefit to Citizens of Maine: This information can lead to the development of interventions to improve maternal and infant health, thereby benefiting the people of Maine. | |
| 2024041901 | Mellett, Jean | Northern Light Health | 6/7/2024 | 7/23/24 | MHDO Level II CY 2024 Inpatient and Outpatient Hospital Encounter Data, including Patient City/Zip, Practitioner Identifiable, Race & Ethnicity, and Integrated Cancer-Incidence Registry Data. | This data request seeks to add an additional year of MHDO data to previously approved data request number 2023012601. Northern Light Health (NLH) will continue to use the MHDO’s inpatient and outpatient hospital data to support its member organizations and their planning efforts to advance initiatives that are important to the hospital system, the people of Maine, and the State’s healthcare system. To improve the health of the people and communities served, NLH will continue to analyze patient origin and demographics, locations of healthcare services and providers, healthcare services utilization rates and volumes and healthcare services provided, including diagnoses and procedures. The benefits to the citizens of Maine include optimized resource allocations, better planning by understanding care delivery factors like distances traveled by patients, and refined program planning for specific age groups. Race and ethnicity data addresses gaps around health care equity. The MHDO’s integrated Cancer-Incidence Registry data informs developments in Oncology services that are especially important given reported decreases in cancer screening and diagnostic procedures due to the COVID pandemic. Provider identification data supports decision-making for future placement of services and/or collaborative efforts. | |
| 2024030803 | Mellet, Jean, VP - Planning and Strategy | Northern Light Health | 5/22/2024 | 7/8/2024 | Custom Level II MHDO Custom Extract CY 2019 - CY 2024 (Excluding CY 2020), Medical Claims data, including Age and Anonymous Payer Name/ID. | Northern Light Health (NLH) will use a custom data extract from the Maine Health Data Organization to better understand infusion services within the State. This data extract will include information on the types of drugs being utilized, sites of care, costs, and service providers. This information will benefit the citizens of Maine by helping Northern Light Health guide planning efforts throughout Maine to bridge service gaps and improve care delivery to the communities NLH serves. |