##New Harmonized Data from LASI-DAD Wave 2
We are pleased to announce a major update to the Harmonized dataset from the Diagnostic Assessment of Dementia for the Longitudinal Aging Study in India (LASI-DAD), which now includes newly available data from Wave 2. The Harmonized LASI-DAD, Version B.2 includes variables of the following:
This dataset is accompanied by a codebook detailing the dataset structure and all included variables. US-based researchers can access the data in Stata, SAS, and R formats through the Gateway to Global Aging Enclave. Non-US-based researchers will have access to the updated data shortly through the AD Workbench.
We are pleased to announce the launch of the new Gateway Research Planner, a tool designed to help researchers build customized research plans by bringing together key resources across the Gateway to Global Aging Data.
The Research Planner streamlines the process of moving from a research idea to implementation by bringing together study documentation, survey questions, harmonized datasets, and harmonized variables, along with programming guidance, into a single tailored output. By selecting a primary survey measure, countries and years of interest, additional measures, and preferred software, users can quickly identify the information needed to begin their analysis.
The tool currently supports 168 survey measures across 41 countries, with data spanning 1992 to 2020, supporting a wide range of cross-national and longitudinal analyses.
The Gateway Research Planner provides the following features:
Studies and Samples: Identify relevant studies and analytic samples based on selected countries and years.
Survey Questions: View comparable survey questions across studies.
Datasets: Find relevant harmonized datasets for selected countries.
Harmonized Variables: Identify comparable harmonized variables across datasets.
Research Programming: Obtain example Stata, R, and SAS code for appending, merging, weighting, and accounting for survey design.
Similar Publications: Explore publications that use the same measures and countries.
The Research Planner is designed to support researchers at all stages of research projects, from refining a research question to initiating cross-national analysis, by bringing together relevant information from across the Gateway’s existing resources into a single tool.
Access the Research Planner here: Gateway Research Planner
The education policy seminar series will take place on the 2nd Thursday of each month at 8:00 AM US Pacific Time / 11:00 AM US Eastern Time / 5:00 PM Central European Time.
The Gateway to Global Aging Data is organizing a monthly virtual seminar series on education policy. The series is led by Dave Knapp (University of Southern California) and Mauricio Avendano (University of Lausanne). The goal of the series is to foster conversations and exchange ideas between the Gateway education team, its collaborators, and outside researchers working in this growing field. Presentations will typically feature in-progress work, and active discussion is encouraged.
Participants must register to receive seminar announcements and meeting links. To register, please submit the form with your email here. Emails will be limited to seminar announcements, and you may unsubscribe at any time.
We are pleased to announce a major update to the Gateway Harmonized HRS End of Life, which now includes observations from Waves 13, 14, and 15 of the HRS exit interviews. The Gateway Harmonized HRS EOL, Version B, makes improvements and changes, and also incorporates many new variables, including:
The dataset is provided in Stata, SAS, and SPSS formats and is accompanied by a codebook that details the dataset and all included variables. This data can be downloaded directly from the HRS website. It is also available through the Gateway Data Enclave.
For more information about the HRS study and Gateway Harmonized data products, you can refer to this blog post on the Gateway’s innovations for HRS users.
On Thursday, October 16, 2025 at 8am US Pacific Time (1am US Eastern Time, and 5pm Central European Time) David Knapp, (University of Southern California), in collaboration with Maya Fransz-Myers, Sarah Gao, and the Gateway LTC Policy Team, will be presenting "Differences in Access to Publicly Provided Long-term Care in the United States." The abstract is provided below.
Please join our seminar using the following Zoom link.
For information about the Long-Term Care Seminar Series, including a schedule of upcoming presentations and list of past presentations, visit our Seminar Series page.
Abstract: In the US, most long-term care (LTC) services are provided by Medicaid, a federal, financial needs-based health insurance program administered by state governments. States have significant flexibility in how they administer their Medicaid programs, which results in distinct eligibility requirements, populations covered, and services provided. However, state Medicaid programs must provide institutional care services for people requiring a nursing facility level of care (NFLOC). Most home and community based care is provided through optional benefit programs offered by states, known as 1915(c) waivers, which must also satisfy NFLOC. These waivers for people age 65 and older are available in 46 states. As part of the Gateway to Global Aging Data’s LTC Policy Explorer, we document 30 state assessments for NFLOC. Using the nationally-representative data from the 2018 Health and Retirement Study (HRS) sample, we apply survey responses to each state’s care needs assessment using a common framework to estimate the proportion age 65 and older satisfying a state’s minimum eligibility for NFLOC. We find: (1) there exists substantial variation across state NFLOC assessments in terms of what fraction of the HRS sample would be prospectively eligible for care benefits based on personal need, (2) that state variation is reduced but persists when applying state financial need requirements, and (3) states with similar predicted eligibility often differ substantially in the care needs reported by those eligible. Our results have implications for Medicaid policy and funding, namely that NFLOC is assessed in an inconsistent manner and that care needs assessments are a viable mechanism for expanding or contracting care access and, consequently, for changing Medicaid spending.