IBM MarketScan Research Databases Access

IBM MarketScan Databases (formerly known as the Truven Health MarketScan Research Databases) are currently available for use by UCSF affiliated researchers.

A UCSF site license provides access to the de-identified commercial claims (inpatient, outpatient, emergency and outpatient pharmacy) databases covering more than 50 million covered lives across the US. The data are contributed by managed care organizations and large, self-insured employers, and can be used for a wide array of population health research. 

Access for use by UCSF affiliates is free for unpublished or internally funded/non-funded research. For extramurally funded projects there is an incremental fee of $30,000/study for non-profit funded research and $60,000/study for industry sponsored research.

IBM MarketScan Research Databases at UCSF

Data Source

Commercial healthcare claims from employers, health plans and hospitals; Medicare supplemental claims (i.e., payments reimbursed by commercial plans after Medicare payments; no CMS claims included)

Data Contents

  • De-identified records of more than 250 million patients

  • Beneficiary enrollment and healthcare service line level claims

  • Sample data elements include:

    • demographic data (age, gender, employment status)

    • geographic location: MSA or state level

    • inpatient and outpatient medical information (admission date and type, principal and secondary diagnosis codes, discharge status, major diagnostic category, principal and secondary procedure codes, DRGs, length of stay, place of service, quantity of services)

    • financial information (total and net payments, payments to physician, hospital, total admission payments)

    • drug information (generic product name, average wholesale price, prescription drug payment, therapeutic class, days supplied, national drug code, refill number, therapeutic group)

Ages Included

0-64 (Commercial data); 65+ (Medicare Supplemental)

Care Settings

Outpatient, inpatient, emergency, and outpatient pharmacy

Cost for Use

Free for UCSF with intramural/internal funding
$30,000/study with extramural non-profit funding
$60,000/study with extramural industry funding

Limitations

  • Submitted charges not included in cost information; no benefit design information available aside from high level insurance product type (PPO/HMO/etc.)

  • Demographics do not include race, income, language, or other social determinants; non-representative sample

  • Difficult to differentiate individual health care providers and attribute patients to unique clinicians

  • Population over age 65 represents only individuals who receive commercial insurance in addition to Medicare.

Operational ConcernsRequires experienced programmer for data management and analysis. Population Health Data Initiative (PHDI) provides limited programmer support to perform initial extracts and brief consultations only. However, we are happy to work with researchers to help identify potential staff collaborators or craft future grant proposals that include funding for programming assistance.

To begin the process for gaining access to this data, please submit a CTSI Consultation Request Form.

Need help?

If you need help determining if the IBM MarketScan databases are right for your project, advice in study design, research methodology, dataset selection, data management, or have questions about data access, submit a CTSI Consultation Request Form.