MDH Phone Surveys
Phone surveys are vital tools for public health organizations like the Minnesota Department of Health because they help track the challenges and needs of communities.
Current surveys
Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System (BRFSS)
MDH's most common phone survey is the Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System (BRFSS). The BRFSS survey collects data all 12 months throughout the year.
MDH works with the survey company ICF Macro to do the survey. The phone call you receive should come from a Minnesota-based area code, and will give the following callback number: 855-561-2244. The interviewer will say they are calling on behalf of the Minnesota Department of Health. You may also ask for a supervisor who will identify themselves as being from the company ICF Macro.
More information about the BRFSS survey is available online at Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System.
Minnesota Health Access Survey
The health access survey is a biennial general population survey of Minnesotans focused on health insurance coverage and access, as well as health care access. Invitations to complete the survey are mailed to a random sample of households in the state and the survey may be completed online or by telephone. The most recent survey was conducted in the fall/winter of 2023. The survey is a collaboration with the University of Minnesota, and MDH works with the survey company SSRS located in Media, Pennsylvania.
Survey participants had the opportunity to join an ongoing panel, Minnesota Voices on Health. Survey opportunities for panelists will be presented throughout the year, with the first in March/April 2024. Panelists may be contacted using email, text, or phone call, based on their stated preferences. Texts would come from 833-956-xxxx and emails would come from terry.johnson@mnhealthaccess.org or from an @ssrs.com email.
More information about the MNHA can be found at Minnesota Health Access Survey.
Minnesota Pregnancy Risk Assessment Monitoring System (Minnesota PRAMS)
PRAMS conducts a population-based survey to collect information on maternal behaviors and experiences before, during, and shortly after a woman's pregnancy. Each month, about 150 PRAMS surveys are mailed to a random sample of women who live in Minnesota who have recently delivered a live-born infant. The survey is given in English or Spanish. Multiple mail attempts are made to sampled mothers. However, a phone survey is conducted for mothers who do not respond by mail. MDH works with Market Decisions Research to do the phone surveys. The Minnesota Department of Health will be displayed on the caller ID. The phone call you receive should be from 651-273-3751. The results of the survey will provide useful information to identify high-risk groups, select maternal and child health priorities, establish prevention programs, and inform policy changes that can improve the health of mothers and babies in Minnesota.
Post COVID-19 follow-up
On an ongoing basis, MDH is conducting phone interviews to better understand the long-term impacts of COVID-19 and the pandemic on the lives of Minnesotans who have been infected with SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19.
The project involves calling a sample of people across the state approximately one month after their lab-confirmed COVID-19 infection. Phone calls will come from this number: 763-445-4875.
Callers will identify themselves as being from the Minnesota Department of Health. The results of this survey will help us identify groups who may have been disproportionately impacted by COVID-19 and the pandemic and inform programmatic activities and priorities to equitably support those most affected.
COVID-19 case interviews
On an ongoing basis, MDH is conducting case interviews by calling some people who have a recent lab-confirmed COVID-19 infection to better understand the disease, circulating variants, and exposures of interest. Callers for the interviews will identify themselves as being from the Minnesota Department of Health with phone calls coming from this number: 763-312-6420. More information about COVID-19 is available by visiting Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19).
Foodborne, waterborne, vector-borne, and zoonotic diseases: exposure follow-up
On an ongoing basis, MDH staff make phone calls to Minnesotans who were diagnosed with certain reportable diseases or as part of outbreak investigations. We may ask questions about symptoms, foods, water, animals, outdoor activities, and other exposures. These questions help us learn why people got sick, identify outbreaks, and prevent other people from getting sick.
The phone calls (and sometimes texts or emails) may come from multiple phone numbers, all starting with 651-201-xxxx. If you receive a call and are unsure whether it is the health department, you may call us back at 651-201-5655 or 1-877-FOODILL (1-877-366-3455) to confirm.
Avoiding scams
Scam artists may call people and try to trick them into thinking they are responding to a legitimate survey to get them to share private information. Learn tips for Avoiding Phone Scams.