I. Finding and Using Healthcare Data

11. What information is available on care provided to VA under contract?

This describes databases that characterize the care provided to VA patients by contract providers. This care is recorded in the Fee Basis files and in certain of the VA Patient Treatment Files (PTF) and Decision Support System (DSS) national data extracts.

Patient Treatment Files (PTF)

PTF files, also known as the Medical SAS Inpatient Datasets, include information on some care provided under contract to VA. Acute hospital stays at non-VA hospitals are recorded in the Non-VA Hospitalization (NVH) file. Long-term care services provided by (non-VA) community nursing homes appear in the regular PTF extended care file and are distinguished by the value “42” for the variable STATYPE plus a particular bedsection (BEDSECN) value. (Bedsection is also called "treating specialty.") The BEDSECN value is 44 if the stay started on or after July 1, 2006, and 80 if it started earlier.

DSS National Data Extracts

Long-term care at community nursing homes appears in the DSS national data extracts (NDEs) as well, but here the data appear in outpatient files rather than inpatient.

Fee Basis files

The Non-VA Fee Basis Medical System (or Fee Basis system) reports the cost of care paid by VA but provided outside of VA facilities. Care provided by university affiliates under VA sharing agreements is excluded.

There are currently two sources of Fee Basis data. The data are stored in SAS file format at the VA Corporate Franchise Data Center (CFD). Access requires a timeshare account established through a user’s local Information Security Officer (ISO). A second source of Fee Basis data is the Financial and Clinical Data Mart (FCDM), a web-based method of viewing summary data. Researchers will not have access to individual-level data through FCDM. The Data Mart is accessed through the KLFMenu and is therefore limited to those with access to the VA intranet.

For details on the Fee Basis data, see FAQ I13 ("How can I use the VA Fee Basis files to find the cost of health care provided by private providers under contract with VA?").