Determining Accurate Vaccination Coverage Rates for Adolescents: The National Immunization Survey-Teen 2006

Since 1994, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has funded the National Immunization Survey (NIS), a large telephone survey used to estimate vaccination coverage of U.S. children aged 19-35 months. The NIS is a two-phase survey that obtains vaccination receipt information from a random-digit-dialed survey, designed to identify households with eligible children, followed by a provider record check, which obtains provider-reported vaccination histories for eligible children. In 2006, the survey was expanded for the first time to include a national sample of adolescents aged 13-17 years, called the NIS-Teen. This article summarizes the methodology used in the NIS-Teen. In 2008, the NIS-Teen was expanded to collect state-specific and national-level data to determine vaccination coverage estimates. This survey provides valuable information to guide immunization programs for adolescents.