Applicants can request up to 3 years of hospital discharge data beyond the current calendar year, regardless of whether they are requesting limited or identifiable data files. This provides flexibility for researchers while still maintaining appropriate data access controls.
SPARCS Inpatient and Outpatient limited data files are currently available for the following years:
- Inpatient (1982-present)
- Outpatient to Ambulatory Surgery (1983-present)
- Emergency Department (2005-present)
- Expanded Outpatient Data Collection (EODC) (2011-present)
SPARCS data is requested by calendar year for a predetermined time. An applicant can request up to three (3) years beyond the current calendar year.
The same 3-year limit is reiterated for requests for identifiable SPARCS data files.