¹⁵Another important aspect of the RAI—one probably will not add to its appeal in a political battle—is that MDS data are available on all nursing home residents, not just those whose costs are covered by public payers. This makes the MDS data a powerful tool for policy analysts, policymakers, and researchers interested in long-term care. Archived MDS data offer them a very detailed picture of the characteristics of the entire nursing home population in this country. The data can be used to generate quality indicators that can be used by facilities to identify areas for improvement or by state regulatory agencies to target surveys. In addition, these population data can be used to address a variety of issues beyond the reach of the traditional sample data collected in the National Nursing Home Survey or the Medical Expenditures Panel Survey. If a researcher wishes to investigate the needs and strengths of the nursing home population in isolated rural areas, for example, then only population data (or a very expensive and difficult primary data collection) will allow him or her to pursue such an analysis based on data from a meaningful number of residents. [Return to Text]