'High-value' government data goes online
WASHINGTON - The Obama administration Friday posted to the Internet a wealth of government data from all cabinet-level departments, on topics ranging from child car seats to Medicare services.
The mountain of newly available information comes a year and a day after President Barack Obama promised on his first full day on the job an open, transparent government.
Under a Dec. 8 White House directive, each department must post online at least three collections of "high-value" government data that never have been previously disclosed.
The Transportation Department will post ratings for 2,400 lines of tires for consumer safety based on tire tread wear, traction performance and temperature resistance. The Labor Department will release the names of 80,000 workplaces where injuries and illness have occurred in the past 10 years.
The Medicare database has been available for a fee of $100 on CD-ROM. Under the Obama initiative, it can be downloaded free, providing detailed breakdowns of payments for Medicare services. The Medicare data will be sortable by the type of medical service provided.
A National Highway Traffic Safety Administration database rates car seats for ease of use, evaluating the simplicity of instruction sheets, labels, vehicle installation features and securing the child.
"We're democratizing data," White House chief Information Officer Vivek Kundra said Thursday in an interview.
All the new data collections will be added to the government's Web site, data.gov. - AP
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