Bridging between two standards for collecting information on race and ethnicity: an application to Census 2000 and vital rates.
OBJECTIVE
The 2000 Census, which provides denominators used in calculating vital statistics and other rates, allowed multiple-race responses. Many other data systems that provide numerators used in calculating rates collect only single-race data. Bridging is needed to make the numerators and denominators comparable. This report describes and evaluates the method used by the National Center for Health Statistics to bridge multiple-race responses obtained from Census 2000 to single-race categories, creating single-race population estimates that are available to the public.


METHODS
The authors fitted logistic regression models to multiple-race data from the National Health Interview Survey (NHIS) for 1997-2000. These fitted models, and two bridging methods previously suggested by the Office of Management and Budget, were applied to the public-use Census Modified Race Data Summary file to create single-race population estimates for the U.S. The authors also compared death rates for single-race groups calculated using these three approaches.


RESULTS
Parameter estimates differed between the NHIS models for the multiple-race groups. For example, as the percentage of multiple-race respondents in a county increased, the likelihood of stating black as a primary race increased among black/white respondents but decreased among American Indian or Alaska Native/black respondents. The inclusion of county-level contextual variables in the regression models as well as the underlying demographic differences across states led to variation in allocation percentages; for example, the allocation of black/white respondents to single-race white ranged from nearly zero to more than 50% across states. Death rates calculated using bridging via the NHIS models were similar to those calculated using other methods, except for the American Indian/Alaska Native group, which included a large proportion of multiple-race reporters.


CONCLUSIONS
Many data systems do not currently allow multiple-race reporting. When such data systems are used with Census counts to produce race-specific rates, bridging methods that incorporate geographic and demographic factors may lead to better rates than methods that do not consider such factors.
Parker
Jennifer D
JD
Office of Analysis, Epidemiology, and Health Promotion, National Center for Health Statistics, 3311 Toledo Rd., Rm. 6415, Hyattsville, MD 20782, USA. jdparker@cdc.gov
Schenker
Nathaniel
N
Ingram
Deborah D
DD
Weed
James A
JA
Heck
Katherine E
KE
Madans
Jennifer H
JH
D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D019352:Censuses; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D003625:Data Collection; D005006:Ethnicity; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007223:Infant; D007231:Infant, Newborn; D007407:Interviews as Topic; D016015:Logistic Models; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009026:Mortality / Q000639:trends; D009309:National Center for Health Statistics, U.S.; D044469:Racial Groups; D018401:Sample Size; D014481:United States; D014798:Vital Statistics