Electronic Record Linkage to Identify Deaths Among Persons With AIDS – District of Columbia, 2000-2005

This report discusses the use of electronic record linkage to identify deaths that occurred during 2000-2005 among persons with AIDS who resided or were diagnosed in the District of Columbia (DC). This electronic record linkage was used to ascertain deaths annually as part of routine HIV/AIDS surveillance. Record linkage was achieved using Link Plus, a free program developed by CDC. It links AIDS patients in the DC HIV/AIDS Reporting System (HARS), which does not record non-AIDS patients with HIV infection by name, to two other computer data files: (1) the DC Vital Records Division’s electronic death certificate file, and (2) the Social Security Administration’s Death Master File. Data indicate that 54 percent of deaths among persons with AIDS had not been reported previously to HARS. Results indicate that electronic record linkage for death ascertainment is necessary to more accurately estimate the prevalence of persons living with HIV/AIDS.