The Community Need Index Report Series (2006 Edition)

New Features and Enhancements

The CNI 2006 has undergone substantial revisions, while still retaining the essential features and qualities of the previous edition. A brief summary of changes to the report series design, its contents, and the methodological differences between this edition and previous editions are described in this section.

Updates to the Index

The CNI 2006 has been updated with the latest data available together with a revised composite model, as follows: 

  • Previous editions of the CNI have used ten indicators; the CNI 2006 uses nine
  • The incorporation of newly diagnosed HIV case data
  • The widening of many indicators' age bracket from age 15-54 to age 13-64
  • The inclusion of chlamydia in the total counts of newly diagnosed STD cases
  • Limiting the scope of the indicators to exclude the incarcerated population when possible
  • The consolidation of all AIDS cases into a single category
  • The removal of low birth weight as an indicator of HIV/AIDS risk

Improved Reporting

Many improvements to the presentation of the information in the report have been implemented. Highlights of the key improvements are described as follows:

  1. Color-coded maps with ZIP code and county boundaries
    • A color-coding scheme based on the CNI letter scores to denote high, moderate, and low need ZIP codes has been applied to the summary tables and maps.
    • Both ZIP code and county boundaries have been applied to the new CNI maps. This feature allows the reader to gain a visual understanding of the fact that some ZIP codes may cross county lines.
  2. Streamlined and consolodated CNI tables
    • In the CNI 2006, the summary table now contains the percentile rank associated with each ZIP code, which replaces the CNI raw score that has been used in previous editions.
  3. Expanded supplementary tables to include relevant demographic data
    • The CNI 2006 has an expanded demographic data section. Nine different tables, which cover various demographic indicators, are available for each county at the ZIP code level.
  4. Electronic versions available for download
  5. Exclusion of AIDS Institute-funded provider information
    • The CNI 2006 does not include AIDS Institute-funded provider information as found in previous editions.