Died during hospitalization (DIED) is coded from disposition of patient. The HCUP data element for disposition of the patient varies across years of data.

Beginning in the 1998 data, the HCUP data element DISPUniform is used to code DIED.

• If DISPUniform indicates that a patient was discharged alive (values 1-7), then DIED is coded as 0.
• If DISPUniform indicates that a patient died in the hospital (value 20), then DIED is coded as 1.
• If DISPUniform is missing (.) or invalid (.A), then DIED is also missing (.) or invalid (.A).

When DISP_X indicates that a patient died outside of the hospital (value = 40-42), then the disposition is coded as missing (DISPUniform = . and DIED = .).

From 1988-1997 data, the HCUP data element DISP is used to code DIED.

• If DISP indicates that a patient was discharged alive (values 1-7), then DIED is coded as 0.
• If DISP indicates that a patient died in or out of the hospital (value 20), then DIED is coded as 1.
• If DISP is missing (.), invalid (.A), or unavailable from the source (.B), then DIED is also missing (.), invalid (.A), or unavailable from the source (.B).

When noted, patients that died outside of the hospital are included in the same category as patients that died in the hospital (DISP = 20), so for these patients DIED is coded as 1.

In the 1998-2000 HCUP data files, missing values of DIED were erroneously set to invalid (.A).

In 1994, New Jersey reported that Englewood Hospital and Medical Center (DSHOSPID = 00450) incorrectly reported transfers to other hospitals as deaths.