Medical Monitoring Project (MMP)

About MMP

The Medical Monitoring Project (MMP) arose out of a need for a locally and nationally representative, population-based surveillance system that could provide information about the behaviors, clinical outcomes, quality of care, and barriers to care and viral suppression among people with diagnosed HIV in the United States. The project is led by state, local, and territorial health departments in partnership with CDC. Participants are randomly selected, and data are collected from both an interview and an abstraction of the participant's medical record. MMP data represent all adults with diagnosed HIV, both on a national level and within the 23 areas that take part in the project.

MMP data can be used to guide policy and funding decisions aimed at increasing engagement in care and improving quality of care, and decreasing disparities experienced among people with HIV throughout the United States. The project can answer questions about the care and services that people with HIV receive, including:

• What services do people need, but not receive?
• How many people with HIV receive HIV medical care?
• What are the barriers to accessing care, prevention, and support services?

Project areas

Currently, 23 project areas (16 state health departments, 6 local health departments, and the Puerto Rico Department of Health) conduct MMP. To view a particular health department's contact information, select the state, city, or territory on the interactive map or scroll down to view the list by state/territory.

What's collected

MMP collects information on various demographic, clinical, and behavioral characteristics including:

• Medical history
• Medical and social services
• Prescribed medications
• Clinic visits

How information is collected

Like many other reportable health conditions, all HIV diagnoses are reported to public health departments. MMP samples adults with diagnosed HIV from this list of reported cases. Only sampled persons can participate. Sampled persons are contacted either directly by a participating health department or through their providers to obtain consent for their participation.

The survey collects basic information, such as birth month and year, gender, and race, as well as questions about a participant's health care. Information from the participant's medical record assists with assessing HIV treatment and quality of care at local and national levels.

Participants receive a token of appreciation (typically a gift card).

MMP staff follow strict protocols to ensure the privacy and confidentiality of information. No individual identifiers, including patient or provider names or addresses, are sent to CDC, nor will they be released or used in any reports.

How MMP data are used

At the national level, MMP data have been used to:

• increase awareness and guide national HIV policy
• guide funding decisions aimed to increase engagement in care and improve quality of care
• inform health care providers of ways to improve care for persons with HIV
• assess adherence to clinical guidelines
• inform CDC's anti-stigma campaign
• decrease disparities experienced among people with HIV

MMP also provides data for the high-priority national HIV prevention social determinants of health indicators for the National HIV/AIDS Strategy that are associated with negative outcomes and affect people's quality of life. These indicators include:

• HIV stigma
• unstable housing
• unmet needs for mental health services
• unemployment
• food insecurity

These indicators help monitor national progress towards ending the HIV epidemic.

Locally, MMP data have been used to inform program planning, policy, and funding for services, including the Ryan White HIV/AIDS program.

Findings are routinely published in surveillance reports and medical journals and presented to community planning groups and at national conferences on topics, such as HIV medication prescription, viral suppression, and health care coverage.

Data releases

• Behavioral and Clinical Characteristics of Persons with Diagnosed HIV Infection
• Individual-level Social Determinants of Health and Quality of Life Among Persons with Diagnosed HIV Infection
• Back Issues of Data Reports on CDC Stacks
• NCHHSTP Atlas Plus

Resources