Mental Health Data Sources

Purpose

There are several data sources that provide national, state, or local data on mental health, mental distress, or mental health conditions for people living in the United States.

Data sources

Looking for children's mental health data?‎

Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System (BRFSS)

  • Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System (BRFSS)
    • BRFSS collects information on health risk behaviors, preventative practices, and health care access. Mental health topics covered include recent mentally unhealthy days, anxiety and depressive disorders, mental disorders and stigma, and psychological distress.
  • Household Pulse Survey
    • Since 2020, CDC has partnered with the U.S. Census Bureau on the Household Pulse Survey to continuously monitor trends in mental health, health insurance coverage, and problems accessing care. Mental health topics include questions about symptoms of anxiety and depression, social connectedness, and mental health treatment and care.
  • National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES)
    • NHANES assesses health and nutritional status through interviews and physical examinations. Mental health data cover a number of conditions, including depression and anxiety, substance use, and mental health service use and need.
  • National Health Interview Survey (NHIS)
    • NHIS collects data on both adult and children’s mental health and mental disorders. For adults, this includes questions about serious psychological distress and feelings of depression and anxiety. NHIS also examines mental health service use and whether individuals have unmet mental health needs.
  • National Ambulatory Medical Care Survey (NAMCS)
    • NAMCS collects data on visits to non-federally employed office-based physicians who are primarily engaged in direct patient care and, starting in 2006, a separate sample of visits to community health centers. Data are collected on type of provider, medications, primary diagnoses and presence of long-lasting conditions.
  • National Hospital Care Survey (NHCS)
    • NHCS allows examination of care provided across treatment settings. Data cover physicians' diagnoses, services and procedures, types of health care professionals seen, hospital characteristics, discharge diagnoses, surgical and diagnostic procedures, and prescriptions for ambulatory visits.
  • National Post-acute and Long-term Care Study (NPALS)
    • NPALS monitors trends in the supply, provision, and use of the major sectors of paid, regulated long-term care services. Mental health data cover mental illness, depression, and service use.
  • National Violent Death Reporting System (NVDRS)
    • NVDRS collects data from medical examiners, coroners, police, crime labs, and death certificates to understand the circumstances surrounding violent deaths, including suicide. NVDRS can also provide details on the circumstances that may have led to violent deaths, including a history of a known mental disorder.
  • Pregnancy Risk Assessment Monitoring System (PRAMS)
    • PRAMS collects data on maternal attitudes and experiences before, during, and after pregnancy. Surveillance research includes the prevalence of self-reported postpartum depression and anxiety symptoms.