The mission of the Vital Event Statistics Program is to assure access to timely, comprehensive population-based health data to support community needs assessments, evidence-based policy and program decisions, and evaluations of health outcomes and services. This mission is accomplished through the collection, analysis, and dissemination of population-based health data. Our goal is to provide appropriate access that is balanced with the need to protect the privacy of individuals. Data is collected via vital records, through the use of surveys, and by partnerships with other public and private entities such as the U.S. Census Bureau. Customers for our information include the general public, other legislative and executive branch agencies (both state and federal), local communities and researchers. The Vital Event Statistics Program works as a partner with the National Center for Health Statistics and with its counterparts in other states.
For archived Health Statistics web tables please use the following link: https://www.vdh.virginia.gov/HealthStats/stats.htm
Pregnancy - includes subsets of Birth, Induced Termination of Pregnancy, and Natural Fetal Death data.
Mortality - includes subsets of Overdose, Death, and Infant Death information.
Annual Report - the most recently published Virginia Vital Records, Annual Report. The Annual Report has a total 436 data tables dedicated to Local, State, and Teenage level information.
Population Data - reviews demography and population data to include both estimated population tables and life expectancy estimates.
Geographical Summaries - includes shape files and map information for Virginia.
Marriage and Divorce Data - reviews marriages, divorces, and annulments of Virginia residents.
Data is produced and processed from sources believed to be reliable and accurate at that point of time. No warranty expressed or implied is made regarding accuracy, adequacy, completeness, legality, reliability or usefulness of any information. Additionally, not all data elements are reported at the source. Please see Virginia Code §32.1 for information on data mandated to be conveyed by the patient and/or facility. This disclaimer applies to both isolated and aggregate uses of the data.
Q: What type of data can I find on your site?
A: Summary Statistical Vital Event Data such as: Births, Induced Termination of Pregnancy, Spontaneous Fetal Death, Infant Death, Death, Marriage, and Divorce data.
Q: Where can I find data that is not published on your site?
A: For all data requests of non-published data as well as information on file formats and fees, please fill out the form located at: Virginia Health Statistics Data Request Form.
Q: Where can I find past archived data?
A: For archived Health Statistics web tables please use the following link: https://www.vdh.virginia.gov/HealthStats/stats.htm
Q: Where can I find incidence of disease data for Virginia?
A: Incidence of disease data can be found online at VDH's Office of Epidemiology or by phone at (804) 864-8141.
Q: How can I obtain a copy of a birth or death certificate or a certificate for a marriage or divorce in Virginia?
A: Copies of these certificates can be obtained by contacting the Virginia Office of Vital Records.
Q: How can I obtain genealogy information?
A: The Library of Virginia has research guides and finding aids listed on their site.
Q: Do you have information on marriage and divorce in Virginia?
A: Yes, data on marriages and divorces can be found on our Statistical Reports and Tables page here.
Q: Do you collect information on the population of Virginia?
A: No, however, we do publish population data and rates prepared by the National Center for Health Statistics (NCHS) and the U.S. Bureau of the Census. This information is available in our annual reports and also on our web site.
Q: In what formats can you send data?
A: Data can be sent as a .pdf, .csv, .xlsx, or in other formats via email and/or Secure File Transfer Protocol (SFTP).
Q: What is involved if my research project requires data specific to individual records?
A: Access to individual birth certificates, death certificates, or marriage or divorce records requires that your request – whether it is for research purposes or not – be reviewed by the State Registrar in the Office of Vital Records. Similarly, access to identifiable birth, death, marriage, or divorce data in tabular format must also be reviewed by the State Registrar. In all cases, individual privacy will be a primary concern, and you may be asked to remove certain identifying characteristics from your request.
During this process, you can expect to be asked for the following:
A copy of the research protocol, including a description of how the requested data will be used and the retention time you expect to use.
A list of specific data elements being requested.
A written agreement not to share data with third parties.
A description of how the data will be stored, and confidentiality maintained.
A description of how the data will be destroyed upon completion of your project.
Lastly, your research proposal must be submitted to the VDH Institutional Review Board (IRB). Failure to obtain an IRB review will result in a denial of your request. The IRB review request can be conducted at the same time as the data request, but both must be fully approved before data will be given out.
Q: Where do I send comments, questions, or suggestions?
A: We're committed to building a web site that delivers timely, user-friendly information that meets the needs of the researcher and the public. We value any comments that can help us achieve that goal. Please e-mail comments to the Vital Event Statistics Program.
Age-adjusted Death Rates: Age-adjusted death rates are weighted averages of age-specific death rates. The weights are the proportion of persons in corresponding age groups based on a standard million population. In this report the standard million U.S. population for the year 2000 is used. The advantage of age-adjusted rates for total deaths compared with unadjusted rates is that they allow for comparisons across jurisdictional, ethnic, and race/sex groups.
Central Tendency of the Data: The median is the measure of central tendency generally used in the tables of this report. It is a positional measure, defined as the value of the observation that divides the distribution of the data into two equal parts, such that 50 percent of the observations are equal to or less than the median and 50 percent equal to or greater than it. It does not indicate the scatter or symmetry of the observed observations around it.
Confidence Interval: A statistical measure which utilizes a range of values within which the true value of a population parameter is bounded within a given probability. In this report a 95% confidence interval is used to determine the reliability of statistically significant (non-random) differences in age-adjusted death rates.
Early Infant Deaths: Early Infant Deaths is the term utilized in this report to refer to infant deaths under one day of age. Hebdomadal Deaths are deaths under seven days of age, Neonatal Deaths are deaths under 28 days of age, and Postneonatal Deaths are deaths 28 days and over but under one year of age.
Ethnicity and Race: Only two ethnic classes are recognized in the data, Hispanic and Non-Hispanic, where the term Hispanic refers to persons who can trace their ancestry in some degree to the peoples of the Iberian Peninsula and the nations of Portugal and Spain. The term Latino is also used for Hispanic. Thus a Hispanic may be of any race as a result of inter-racial unions in the history of the Americas. Fifteen race codes are currently used in the Virginia vital statistics data. These are White, Black, American Indian, Ten Asian Groups, Other Races, and Unknown. The Asian group has been increased from the five, Chinese, Japanese, Hawaiian, Filipino, and Other Asian and Pacific Islander, to ten in recent years including Asian Indian, Korean, Vietnamese, Guamian, and Samoan. Currently the race designation used for the pregnancy categories of births and both types of fetal deaths is that of the mother. For deaths, the race is that of the decedent at death. In the case of infant deaths, this may mean that the race of the child could be declared differently at birth and at death.
Fetal Death: A Fetal Death is defined as death prior to the complete expulsion or extraction from its mother of a product of human conception, regardless of the duration of the pregnancy; death is indicated by the fact that after such expulsion or extraction, the fetus does not breathe or show any other evidence of life, such as beating of the heart, pulsation of the umbilical cord, or definite movement of voluntary muscles. (Vital Statistics Laws of Virginia, Chapter 7, Section 32.1-249.2).
Induced Terminations of Pregnancy: These are fetal deaths in which the pregnancy has been deliberately terminated with the purpose of producing a nonviable fetus. Molar and ectopic pregnancies are excluded.
Leading Causes of Death: These are underlying causes of death considered rankable by the National Center for Health Statistics based on descending numbers of deaths listed for each cause. There are 50 of them in the basic 113-line cause of death list by the NCHS under the Tenth Revision of the International Classification of Diseases Code. There are 45 rankable causes of Natural Fetal Deaths in a suggested 124-line list and 71 rankable causes of Infant Deaths in a suggested 130-line list.
Live Births: A live birth is defined as the complete expulsion or extraction of a product of human conception from its mother, irrespective of the duration of pregnancy, which, after such expulsion or extraction, breathes or shows any other evidence of life such as beating of the heart, pulsation of the umbilical cord, or definite movement of voluntary muscles, whether or not the umbilical cord has been cut or the placenta is attached. (Vital Statistics Laws of Virginia, Chapter 7, Section 32.1-249.7)
Low Weight Live Births: A low weight birth is defined as one in which the birth weight is less than 2,500 grams (5 pounds 8 ounces), regardless of gestation. A very low weight birth is one with a birth weight of less than 1,500 grams (3 pounds 5 ounces).
Natural Fetal Deaths: Formerly called miscarriages; these are fetal deaths that are not induced in order to produce a nonviable fetus. They are also referred to as spontaneous abortions, although they include the terminations of molar and ectopic pregnancies. The term includes the misnomer of still births.
Non-Marital Births: Non-Marital Births are those which occurred to women who were not married to the fathers of the children at any time during the preceding 10 months.
Non-Marital Natural Fetal Deaths/Induced Terminations: Non-Marital Natural Fetal Deaths/Induced Terminations are those which occurred to women who were not married to the fathers at the time of the event.
Perinatal Deaths: These are defined as the sum of natural fetal deaths of 28 or more weeks gestation and the deaths of infants under seven days of age. The concept focuses on the critical thirteen-week period at the end of a normal 40-week gestation as well as the first week of life of the newborn. It is used as a result of differing definitions of infant deaths in the world.
Population Projections: The population projections in this Appendix are from the National Center for Health Statistics with the approval of the U.S. Bureau of the Census for the four basic races of White, Black, Asian, and Native American by age, race, and sex for the aggregate State.
Residence Data: These refer to the Virginia city or county where the mother resided for a birth, where the patient resided for an induced termination of pregnancy or a natural fetal death, or where the deceased resided for a death. The term includes the vital events of Virginia residents regardless of where the event occurred. Most of the methods of presentation in the report refer to Virginia residents.
Total Deaths: Total Deaths include Infant Deaths and Maternal Deaths. Induced Terminations and Natural Fetal Deaths are excluded.
Total Infant Deaths: These are deaths of children under one year of age, some of whom may have been born in the previous year.
Underlying Cause of Death: This is the term by which deaths are classified and listed in the tables, to be distinguished from the immediate and other causes of death listed on the death certificate. It may be defined as (a) the disease or injury which initiated the train of morbid events leading directly to death, or (b) the circumstances of the accident or violence which produced the fatal injury.
NOTE: Definitions are derived from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) National Center for Health Statistics(NCHS) as well as Virginia Code § 32.1 - 249.
The following sites provide health-related information of interest to researchers. If you would like to have your site added to our list, please e-mail us with the Internet address.Virginia
Virginia Open Data Portal - The Virginia Open Data Portal serves to extend access to Commonwealth data.
Cooper Center for Public Service, UVA - Provides Virginia specific statistics on population, economics and related issues.
Virginia Office of Vital Records - Provides information on obtaining individual birth and death records.
VDH Local Health Districts - Directory and contact information for local Health Districts.
Office of the Chief Medical Examiner (OCME) - Provides information on the cause and manner of certain circumstances within Virginia.
Federal Government
National Center for Health Statistics - Provides national statistics on natality, mortality, and related areas.
U.S. Census Bureau - Provides national statistics on population, poverty levels and related topics.
Data.Gov - Home of the United States Government open data.
Office of Minority Health - Provides information on health policies and issues affecting minority racial and ethnic communities.
Healthy People 2020 - Provides information regarding the national public health goals for the year 2020.
Vital Event Statistics Program, Virginia Department of Health, http://vdhweb.vdh.virginia.gov/information-management/vital-event-statistics/