Demographic Data Standards at MDH

In partnership with community members and community organizations, MDH is developing standards for demographic data. 

These data standards can help all Minnesotans:  

• Quickly identify health trends and inequities
• Create more effective programs and policies
• Track the progress of public health strategies

These demographic data standards will be inclusive and representative of Minnesota and Minnesotans. As MDH incorporates these standards into its work, MDH will share more information here about coding, methodology, and adoption.

Definitions

• Demographic data is information about groups of people, like their age, gender, and race/ethnicity.
• Disaggregated data is data that has been broken down in to its smaller parts, like specific age groups, genders, or races/ethnicities.
• Data standards are the guidelines for how we collect data in consistent ways that ensure quality and privacy.

Updates

For updates on this work, subscribe to the MDH demographic data standards email list.