Description
For all events, FLATFEETYPE indicates if the event is the "stem" or "leaf" of a flat fee group. A stem is the initial medical service of a flat fee group and a leaf is one of the subsequent events. All leaf records have their expenditure variables set to zero and will have the same FLATFEEID as the stem record. See FLATFEEID for more information on flat fee groups.
Home health events only have flat fee groups in 1996 and 1997 and other medical expenses only have flat fee groups from 1996-2017.
IPUMS MEPS reports the universe for each variable based on a thorough review of the original MEPS documentation. Investigating the data may reveal cases that do not meet the stated universe. Users are encouraged to validate universes for their analyses.
FLATFEETYPE is on the event record (see RECTYPE for more details on the different record types in IPUMS MEPS). Variables offered on the event record through IPUMS MEPS are derived from the dental visits, other medical expenses, hospital inpatient stays, emergency room visits, outpatient visits, office-based medical provider visits, and home health event files provided by AHRQ. Please see our overview of the event, medical conditions, and prescribed medicines variables, including how those variables are offered through IPUMS MEPS, and general considerations to keep in mind when conducting analyses using these variables.
Codes and Frequencies
Universe
- 1996-1997: All events.
- 1998-2017: Office-based medical provider visits, outpatient visits, emergency room visits, hospital inpatient stays, dental visits, and other medical expenses (EVENTYPE).
- 2018-2022: Office-based medical provider visits, outpatient visits, emergency room visits, hospital inpatient stays, and dental visits (EVENTYPE).
Availability
- 1996-2022
Weights
- 1996-2022 : PERWEIGHT
