Dartmouth Atlas of Healthcare

What Dartmouth Atlas of Healthcare does

The Dartmouth Atlas of Healthcare is a research project housed within The Dartmouth Institute for Health Policy and Clinical Practice at Dartmouth College, established following John E. Wennberg's 1973 Science article on small area variations in healthcare. The project analyzed geographic variations in U.S. healthcare utilization, spending, and outcomes using Medicare and Medicaid claims data, applying standardized geographic units comprising 306 Hospital Referral Regions and 3,436 Hospital Service Areas. Its product suite included nine Tableau-based interactive visualization tools covering Medicare reimbursements, end-of-life care, surgical and medical discharges, primary care quality, post-discharge events, hospital-level data, and COVID-19 mapping, alongside downloadable research datasets on the Dartmouth Dataverse and 20 book-length atlas editions.

The project served academic researchers, federal and state policymakers, healthcare journalists, and non-governmental organizations as a free public health resource, with no commercial pricing model. Distribution occurred through peer-reviewed publications (8,700+ citations between 1996-2023), the public website, the Dartmouth Dataverse repository, and direct policy engagement. Multiple Affordable Care Act reforms enacted in 2010 are attributed to Dartmouth Atlas findings, and the project identified that up to 30% of U.S. healthcare spending may constitute waste.

The Dartmouth Atlas Project ceased active operations effective June 30, 2024, following Wennberg's death and changes to CMS policies on the provision of claims data for research. The website continues as an archive providing historical rates through 2019. The project is owned by The Trustees of Dartmouth College, was never venture-funded, and was sustained through institutional support and research grants rather than commercial revenue.

Name

Dartmouth Atlas of Healthcare

Legal name

The Trustees of Dartmouth College

Website

https://dartmouthatlas.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

1996

Operating status

Closed

Short description

Dartmouth College research project that analyzed U.S. healthcare utilization variations across 306 hospital referral regions using Medicare and Medicaid claims data. Provided free data and interactive tools to researchers, policymakers, and media until ceasing active operations in June 2024.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Healthcare Research & Analytics

NAICS

Research and Development in the Physical, Engineering, and Life Sciences (54171), Research and Development in the Social Sciences and Humanities (54172)

SIC

Services-Computer Programming, Data Processing, Etc. (7370), Services-Engineering, Accounting, Research, Management (8700)

akta.pro primary industry

Healthcare Utilization, Claims & Administrative Data Analytics (HLAJAJAK)

akta.pro secondary industries

Population Health Surveillance & Epidemiologic Analytics (HLAJAJAB), Health Statistics & Reporting (National/State/Local Indicators) (HLAJAJAC), Health Data, Vital Statistics & Population Health Informatics (BPAIAJAM)

Keywords

• Health services research
• Healthcare utilization data
• Medicare claims analysis
• Geographic variation research
• Healthcare policy research

Headquarters

HQ city

Lebanon

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Technology or R&D, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Academic/Research Institution: The Dartmouth Atlas Project operated as a research initiative at The Dartmouth Institute for Health Policy and Clinical Practice, funded through Dartmouth College and research grants. No commercial revenue model; the project provided free public access to data and publications as a public health resource. The project effectively ended on June 30, 2024 due to changes in CMS data policies.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

The Dartmouth Atlas Project is a healthcare research initiative that documents and analyzes geographic variations in U.S. medical resource distribution, utilization, and spending using Medicare and Medicaid claims data. It provides researchers, policymakers, NGOs, and media with free public access to interactive Tableau-based visualization tools, downloadable research datasets, and book-length atlas reports covering 306 hospital referral regions and 3,436 hospital service areas across the United States.

Product overview

The Dartmouth Atlas of Health Care is a healthcare research project that provides interactive data visualization tools and downloadable research data analyzing geographic variations in medical resource distribution and utilization across the United States. The portfolio consists of nine interactive Tableau-based visualization apps covering Medicare reimbursements, end-of-life care, cancer care, primary care quality, post-discharge events, medical discharges, surgical discharges, hospital-specific data, and COVID-19 mapping. Supporting products include downloadable research datasets hosted on Dataverse, book-length atlas reports and briefs, and an extensive bibliography of peer-reviewed research articles spanning over 50 years of health services research.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Medicare Reimbursements Interactive App Interactive visualization tool exploring Medicare spending variation across hospital referral regions, states, counties, and hospital service areas. Displays price-adjusted Medicare reimbursements and per-enrollee spending data for researchers, policymakers, and analysts.
• End of Life Care Interactive App Interactive visualization of care intensity in the last six months of life, including hospital admissions, ICU admissions, inpatient days, and spending for Medicare decedents. Used by researchers and policymakers studying end-of-life care patterns.
• End of Life Cancer Care Interactive App Interactive dashboard profiling National Quality Forum end-of-life quality metrics for cancer care at hospitals, including NCCN and NCI-designated Comprehensive Cancer Centers.
• Primary Care Access and Quality Measures Interactive App Interactive visualization of primary care quality measures for Medicare beneficiaries including diabetes care (A1c testing, lipid testing, eye exams) and mammography rates.
• Post-Discharge Events Interactive App Interactive visualization of hospital readmission rates and post-acute care patterns including 30-day ER visit rates and 14-day primary care visit rates by HRR, HSA, state, county, and hospital.
• Medical Discharges Interactive App Interactive visualization of medical discharge rates including ambulatory care-sensitive conditions such as COPD, bacterial pneumonia, asthma, CHF, hypertension, angina, cellulitis, and diabetes.
• Surgical Discharges Interactive App Interactive visualization of surgical procedure rates including hip/knee replacement, back surgery, CABG, PCI, cholecystectomy, and other inpatient surgical interventions.
• Data by Hospital Interactive Apps Suite of hospital-level interactive tools including Hospital Care Intensity, Medicare Reimbursements, Resource Inputs, Patient Experience, and Post-Acute Care measures.
• Mapping COVID-19 Interactive App Interactive mapping of COVID-19 cases, deaths, and growth rates by hospital referral region, with population-based rates of reported cases and deaths aggregated from county-level data sourced from The New York Times.
• Research Data Downloads Downloadable research datasets including Atlas rates, geographic crosswalks (ZIP to HSA to HRR), coding trends data, and supplemental research data hosted on the Dartmouth Dataverse repository for researcher access.
• Atlases and Reports Book-length editions of The Dartmouth Atlas of Health Care covering national and regional variations, plus topic and issue briefs on specific health policy topics.
• COVID-19 High-Risk Population Dataset Downloadable dataset measuring the fraction of population at high risk for COVID-19 complications (Medicare beneficiaries 65+ with two or more chronic conditions), available at HSA and HRR levels.

Quantifiable outcome

• 8,700+ peer-reviewed articles referencing Dartmouth Atlas data published between 1996-2023
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers4 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration8 records

Feature4 records

Partnerships

Six partnerships are on record, tiered major, minor, core and supporting.

• Microsoft Healthcare NeXTmajorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2020Collaboration to create an index measuring the fraction of population at high risk for COVID-19 complications. The research identified Medicare beneficiaries over age 65 with at least two of six chronic conditions (Diabetes, vascular disease, chronic kidney disease, heart disease, lung disease, and cancer) using CMS Chronic Condition Warehouse data. Analysis team included William Weeks, Nancy Morden, Grace Huynh, James Weinstein, Jonathan Larson, Bryan Tower from Dartmouth and Microsoft, along with CareJourney analysts.
• CareJourneymajorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2020Partnered with Dartmouth and Microsoft Healthcare NeXT to analyze COVID-19 high-risk populations. CareJourney analysts (Stacey Cao and Zach Bredl) contributed to developing the novel index measuring population risk for COVID-19 complications using 2018 Medicare claims data and U.S. Census estimates.
• The New York TimesminorOthersThe New York Times collected and organized county-level COVID-19 case and death data that was aggregated to hospital referral regions by the Dartmouth Atlas Project for the Mapping COVID-19 initiative. NYT data was sourced from state and local health departments and updated daily.
• National Library of MedicineminorOthersThe Dartmouth Atlas collection is archived at the National Library of Medicine (NIH), ensuring long-term preservation and accessibility of the research materials.
• Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS)coreOthersPrimary data source for the project. CMS provides Medicare claims data through the Chronic Condition Warehouse and other files for research purposes. However, changes to CMS policies regarding claims data provision for research in 2024 contributed to the project's cessation.
• American Hospital AssociationsupportingOthersData source for hospital capacity information including bed counts, facility types, and hospital characteristics used in capacity analysis.

Scale indicators5 records

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights3 records

Direct peers

• AcademyHealth: AcademyHealth is the leading professional society for health services and policy research, convening researchers and producing evidence on healthcare delivery, outcomes, and cost. It serves the same researcher and policymaker community as the Dartmouth Atlas and is deeply embedded in the small area variation research field.
• Commonwealth Fund: The Commonwealth Fund is a private foundation that conducts independent health policy research, including analysis of healthcare utilization, costs, and quality across the U.S. Like the Dartmouth Atlas, it publishes free comparative analyses and reports that inform federal and state healthcare reform.
• Mathematica Policy Research: Mathematica conducts policy research and data analysis across healthcare, education, and social programs, including extensive work on Medicare claims and quality measurement. It is comparable to the Dartmouth Atlas as a research-driven analytics organization serving federal agencies and foundations with comparative healthcare analysis.
• Kaiser Family Foundation (KFF): KFF is a major non-profit health policy research organization producing analysis on healthcare spending, utilization, and reform. Like the Dartmouth Atlas, it disseminates free research and data to journalists, policymakers, and the public, with heavy influence on federal health policy debates.
• Peterson Center on Healthcare: The Peterson Center on Healthcare, partnering with KFF, operates the Peterson-KFF Health System Tracker, which produces interactive analyses of U.S. healthcare spending, utilization, and quality by geography. It is a direct functional peer to the Dartmouth Atlas's interactive Medicare and utilization apps.
• National Institute for Health Care Management (NIHCM) Foundation: NIHCM Foundation is a non-profit that funds research and dissemination on healthcare costs, quality, and access. It shares the Dartmouth Atlas's mission of producing accessible, evidence-based research for journalists and policymakers to inform healthcare improvement.
• Health Care Cost Institute: HCCI is a non-profit that analyzes commercial, Medicare, and Medicaid claims data to study U.S. healthcare spending, utilization, and prices. It is the most direct operational peer to Dartmouth Atlas, using analogous claims-based methodology to produce national and regional variation insights for researchers and policymakers.

Others

• Health Affairs: Health Affairs is the leading peer-reviewed journal on health policy, publishing research that builds on datasets like the Dartmouth Atlas. It is a peer in the health services research ecosystem as the primary distribution channel for much of the academic work the Atlas enabled.

Broad incumbents

• RAND Health: RAND Health is a large, established research division producing studies on healthcare quality, cost, and access, with substantial influence on policy. It overlaps with the Dartmouth Atlas as an academic-policy research organization addressing healthcare variation and quality, but operates across a much broader research portfolio.
• NORC at the University of Chicago: NORC is an independent research institution that conducts health services research, including analysis of Medicare and other claims data, often under contract for federal agencies. It is comparable to the Dartmouth Atlas as a large academic-affiliated research organization producing health policy analytics.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

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Frequently asked questions about Dartmouth Atlas of Healthcare