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Transformed Medicaid Statistical Information System (T-MSIS) Analytic Files (TAF)

The Transformed Medicaid Statistical Information System (T-MSIS) Analytic Files (TAF) Research Identifiable Files (RIF) are a research-optimized version of T-MSIS data and serve as a data source tailored to meet the broad research needs of the Medicaid and CHIP data user community. These files include data on Medicaid and Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP) enrollment, demographics, service utilization and payments.

The TAF RIF consist of the Annual Demographic and Eligibility (DE) File, providing information on the demographic, eligibility, and enrollment characteristics of Medicaid and CHIP beneficiaries, and four claim types: Inpatient, Long Term Care, Pharmacy, and Other Services. TAF RIF are available for calendar years 2014, 2015, and 2016.

The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) created several resources to support researchers in their use of the TAF RIF, including technical guidance and a robust portfolio of data quality products. Among these products is a set of TAF Data Quality (DQ) Briefs and Snapshots to assist TAF users and potential TAF users in assessing the accuracy, reliability and usability of the TAF files.

To obtain access to the files, please see the Research Data Assistance Center (ResDAC)  website for information on completing a data use agreement and requesting TAF RIF data. The ResDAC website provides a centralized source of information on CMS datasets.

TAF User Support & Data Quality (DQ) Materials

TAF Technical Guidance

CMS drafted several technical guidance documents to support TAF users, including overviews of the Annual Demographic and Eligibility File and all four claim types.

TAF DQ Products

TAF DQ Briefs assess the reliability, accuracy, and usability of TAF data for conducting analyses of specific Medicaid and CHIP topics. Current briefs cover calendar year 2016 data only. TAF DQ Snapshots summarize the data quality assessments in the DQ Briefs by state and topical areas.

Additional User Support Materials

Additional user support materials include an Introduction to TAF presentation, a quick guide mapping TAF user support materials to materials that were available for TAF’s predecessor, the Medicaid Analytic eXtract (MAX), and a TAF RIF availability chart. All states were required to begin submitting T-MSIS data by October 2015, but cutover dates vary by state, and the TAF RIF availability chart outlines when each state transitioned from MAX to TAF.

TAF Research Products

To support policy making and program monitoring, CMS is developing research products using the TAF data. 

T-MSIS Substance Use Disorder (SUD) Data Book

CMS released the inaugural Substance Use Disorder (SUD) Data Book using preliminary 2017 TAF data. The SUD Data Book is congressionally-mandated through the Substance Use–Disorder Prevention that Promotes Opioid Recovery and Treatment for Patients and Communities Act (P.L. 115-271) (SUPPORT Act). The SUPPORT Act seeks to address the pressing need for substance use disorder treatment and prevention services, with a focus on opioid use. The SUPPORT Act directs the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services to publish the SUD Data Book no later than October 24, 2019 and to issue an updated version of the SUD Data Book no later than January 1 of each calendar year through 2024. This initial SUD Data Book reports the number of Medicaid beneficiaries with a SUD and the services they received during calendar year 2017.

An interactive T-MSIS SUD Data Book data analytics tool is also available. This tool’s data and tables mirror those that have been produced in the SUD Data Book and can be filtered, sorted, and downloaded in multiple formats using a graphical interface. This offers enhanced flexibility for users over the static display of information in the SUD Data Book report.

The SUPPORT Act also requires a description of the quality and completeness of the data used in the SUD Data Book. To provide this additional context, CMS produced several DQ Briefs, available below.

Per Capita Expenditures Methodology Document

State-level Medicaid per capita expenditures were calculated for inclusion in the Medicaid and Children’s Health Insurance Program Scorecard. This analysis draws on the CMS Office of the Actuary (OACT) methodology for estimating national-level Medicaid per capita spending. The data sources for the analysis are preliminary 2017 TAF and CMS-64 expenditures reported in the Medicaid Budget and Expenditures System (MBES).

Download the methodology document: