About Preliminary Data

Preliminary data for births, deaths and induced abortions are undergoing editing procedures which result in frequent and significant changes. Please use caution when interpreting these data. Data can be used for tracking recent health events, but are not appropriate for use in statistical analyses.

Only a limited number of summary tables are available. Birth and death tables show events to Oregon residents. Abortion data include out-of-state residents who obtained abortion services in Oregon, but do not include Oregonians who may have obtained abortions elsewhere.

The data are presented up to a specific processing month. Processing month data are through the most recent month for which the majority of the records have been processed. Some records for months later than the processing month are in the database since vital statistics records are processed as they arrive at the Center for Health Statistics. The data tables will be updated as the data are received and processed.

Border counties will have much less complete data for events because some of their residents experience the event out-of-state. Out-of-state records are sent to the Center for Health Statistics much later than in-state records.

Calculating rates? Aggregating data?

The Data Users Task Group has developed a booklet to help you learn how to gather, interpret, and present data accurately.

Download The Data Difference (pdf) - The data user's guide: Using data for better decisions.