Charter of the
Health Policy Statistics Section
(Established 1994)

Last Updated 4/1/02

Article I. NAME

The name of this organization is the Health Policy Statistics Section of the American Statistical Association (hereafter called the Association).

Article II. OBJECTIVES

The principal objective of the Section is to:

Focus on strategies for improving the quality and reducing the cost of health care in the United States and abroad through the systematic use of quantitative statistical methods.

Specific activities of the Section shall include, but not be limited to:

• Reviewing and critiquing articles on health policy with respect to underlying statistical issues.
• Sponsoring statistical workshops at the regional and national level for health policy data analysts.
• Preparing statistical reports on health policy topics such as patient utilization patterns, health care delivery, socioeconomic status, disease prevention, quality-of-life measures and cost-effectiveness.
• Establishing health policy fellowship programs with industry and government.
• Encouraging ASA members to publish monographs on topics or problems in health policy.
• Offering assistance to legislators and their staffs regarding health statistics and their relationship to decision-making.
• Co-operating with government agencies, such as the National Center for Health Statistics, to establish new ways to utilize their data in the study of health policy issues.
• Setting guidelines for the statistical analysis and reporting of health policy data.

Article III. MEMBERSHIP

Any full member of the Association may become a member of the Section by paying dues to the Section.

The membership year for each member of the Section shall coincide with that member’s membership year in the Association.

Article IV. OFFICERS

The officers of the Section shall be the Chair, the Chair-Elect, the Secretary, the Treasurer, the Program Chair, the Program Chair-Elect, the Publications Officer, and the Representatives to the Association’s Council of Sections. The number of Representatives shall be determined by the Charter of the Council of Sections. All officers shall be members of the Section.

The Chair is the chief officer of the Section and is a member of its Executive Committee. The Chair shall preside at all meetings of the Section and the Executive Committee. The Chair, with the approval of the Executive Committee, may designate committees or individuals to carry out functions of the Section. The Chair shall coordinate the work of the officers and committees of the Section and shall prepare an annual report, for publication in a news bulletin, on the activities of the Section. The Chair shall review the regular financial reports provided by the Association’s central office.

The Chair-Elect shall serve as a member of the Executive Committee and preside over meetings of the Section and the Executive Committee in the absence of the Chair. In consultation with the Chair, the Chair-Elect shall prepare the budget of the Section for the year in which the Chair-Elect is Chair.

The Secretary shall serve as a member of the Executive Committee. The Secretary shall be responsible for the minutes of meetings of the Section and the Executive Committee.

The Treasurer shall serve as a member of the Executive Committee. The Treasurer shall also assist the Chair-Elect in preparing the annual budget and shall monitor the Section's dues collections and expenditures and prepare an annual report on the financial condition of the Section.

The Program Chair shall be responsible for developing and coordinating the Section's sessions and other program events at national and regional meetings of the Association. The Program Chair serves as a member of the Executive Committee and also as a member of the Association's Program Committee.

The Program Chair-Elect shall serve as a member of the Executive Committee and assist the Program Chair.

The Publications Officer shall serve as a member of the Executive Committee and also as the Section’s representative on Association committees concerned with Section publication matters. The Publications Officer shall coordinate activities within the Section related to publications sponsored by the Section. The Publications Officer shall solicit the views of the Section's members concerning the content and operation of the Association's journals and shall bring those views to the attention of the Editors. When requested by the Editors, the Publications Officer shall assist in soliciting, reading, and editing articles on health policy statistics for publication in the Association’s journals.

The Representatives to the Council of the Sections shall serve as members of the Executive Committee and shall represent the interests of the Section and its members that come before the Council of Sections.

Article V. EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE

The Executive Committee of the Section shall consist of the officers of the Section and the immediate Past Chair of the Section. Between business meetings the management of the affairs of the Section shall be in the hands of the Executive Committee, subject to such standing rules as the business meeting may from time to time provide.

Article VI. NOMINATION AND ELECTION OF OFFICERS

Each year the Section's Committee on Nominations shall submit, to the Secretary of the Association and the Section Chair, at least two candidates for each position to be filled. The Association's general deadline for submission of nominations shall apply. As part of the Association's annual election, the Secretary of the Association will mail a ballot to all members of the Section.

Additional nominations may be made by submitting a petition, signed by at least 25 members of the Section, to the Section Chair and the Secretary of the Association. Such a petition must be submitted within 45 days after the mailing date of the publication announcing the names of the candidates submitted by the Committee on Nominations.

If the office of Chair becomes vacant, the Chair-Elect shall become the Chair, the term extending through the following year. The same principle of succession shall apply if the office of Program Chair becomes vacant. Vacancies in other offices shall be filled by appointment by the Chair with the approval of the Executive Committee.

Article VII. TERMS OF OFFICE

The Chair, Chair-Elect, Program Chair, and Program Chair-Elect shall each serve a one-year term. The Chair-Elect and the Program Chair-Elect shall automatically succeed the Chair and the Program Chair, respectively, at the annual change of officers, which shall occur on January 1.

The Secretary, the Treasurer, and the Publications Officer shall each serve a two-year term.

The term of office for the Representatives to the Council of Sections shall be as specified in the Charter of the Council of Sections.

No officer shall be eligible for immediate re-election to the same office except the Secretary and Treasurer.

Article VII. COMMITTEES

1. Types. The Committees of the Section shall consist of the Executive Committee, Standing Committees provided by this Charter, and such Standing or Current Committees as the Chair and the Executive Committee may establish. Current Committees may be established to serve a particular need or interest of the Section.

2. Membership. The term of membership on Standing and Current Committees, if not otherwise specified in the Charter, shall be three years. Initial terms shall be set by the Chair for one, two, or three years so that, as nearly as possible, one-third of the members shall be appointed each year. No member may serve on a committee for more than six consecutive years without specific approval by the Executive Committee, except for ex officio members. Members of committees shall serve until their successors are appointed or elected.

   Unless otherwise specified in this Charter, each committee shall be governed by a Chair appointed by the Chair of the Section. All members of Standing Committees, as well as the Chairs of Current Committees, shall be members of the Section.

3. Normal Time of Appointment. In order that new members of Standing and Current Committees may begin work promptly, the Chair-Elect shall normally designate these members. If possible, the designations shall be made at least two months prior to the time when the new committee members take office.

4. Standing Committees. The three Standing Committees provided by the Charter are as follows:

   1. Committee on Nominations. The Committee on Nominations shall consist of the immediate Past Chair of the Section, who serves as Chair of the Committee, and three other members, one appointed each year by the Chair of the Committee. The Committee shall submit nominations for officers as provided in Article VI of this Charter. Members of the Committee are not eligible for nomination by the Committee.

   2. Committee to Nominate Fellows. The Committee to Nominate Fellows shall consist of three members. Each year the Committee shall identify members of the Section who would be suitable nominees for the honor of Fellow of the American Statistical Association (as described in the By-Laws of the Association) and shall coordinate preparation and submission of the nominations.

   3. Charter Committee. Not more than three years after adoption of this Charter, the Chair shall appoint a Charter Committee for the purpose of reviewing the Charter of the Section. If necessary, the Charter Committee shall prepare a revision to be submitted to the Section not more than five years after the adoption of the Charter, in accordance with Article XI of this Charter. In the event that the Committee undertakes a major revision of the Charter, the Executive Committee may extend the life of the current Charter one year at a time.

   In addition to the Standing Committees provided by this Charter, the Chair, with the approval of the Executive Committee may establish Standing Committees. Such Standing Committees may be dissolved by a majority vote of the Executive Committee.

   Each Standing Committee must submit an annual report to the Executive Committee.

5. Current Committees. Current Committees provided by this Charter may be established to serve a particular need or interest of the Section. The life of a Current Committee may not exceed five years without review of its need by the Executive Committee. Any committee that is to continue for more than one year must have a charge approved by the Executive Committee. Each Current Committee must submit an annual report to the Executive Committee.

   Current Committees established in accordance with this article may be dissolved at any time by a majority vote of the Executive Committee.

Article IX. PUBLICATIONS

Publication of nonjournal periodicals, reports, proceedings, or other publications may be authorized by vote of the Executive Committee.

Editors for Section publications shall be members of the Section and shall be appointed by the Chair with the approval of the Executive Committee.

Article X. MEETINGS

The annual business meeting of the Section shall be held in connection with the annual meeting of the Association and shall be announced in the printed program of the annual meeting. The officers may also conduct business with members of the Section by mail.

The Executive Committee shall meet at the annual meeting of the Association. It may also hold additional meetings at times and places designated by the Chair with the consent of the Executive Committee. Meetings shall be held at the call of the Chair or by vote of two-thirds of the Executive Committee. Between meetings the Executive Committee may conduct business by mail, telephone, or other electronic means.

Article XI. AMENDMENTS

1. Proposal. Amendments to this Charter may be proposed by the Executive Committee or by a petition signed by at least 25 members of the Section. An amendment originating by petition shall be referred to the Executive Committee, which shall vote on its recommendation regarding ratification. Periodic revisions, as provided for in Article VII, shall be referred to the Executive Committee, which may recommend ratification as a whole or in parts. The Executive Committee may also decide upon the final wording of a proposed amendment, as long as such wording is consistent with the original intent of the petition.

2. Ratification. All proposed amendments shall be submitted to the members of the Section for mail vote at the time of the next annual election of officers. If approved by a majority of the members voting, the amendment shall take effect immediately. A copy of the amendment shall be filed with the Secretary of the Association.

Please address questions or comments about this website to the HPSS Assistant Editor.