HCUPtools: An R package for streamlined access to healthcare cost and utilization project resources

Healthcare data analysis requires efficient access to standardized classification systems and statistical resources. The Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ) Healthcare Cost and Utilization Project (HCUP) provides essential tools including Clinical Classifications Software Refined (CCSR) mapping files and Summary Trend Tables, but manual access and processing can be time-consuming and error-prone. HCUPtools is an open-source R package that streamlines access to publicly available HCUP resources, enabling researchers and healthcare analysts to efficiently map International Classification of Diseases, Tenth Revision (ICD-10) codes to CCSR categories and access aggregated hospital utilization statistics. The package provides automated download capabilities, multiple output formats for different analytical needs, version management, and intelligent caching. A decomposed, illustrative performance comparison (Section 3.4) suggests large reductions in clock time for scripted download and reshaping relative to a manual baseline whose minute-by-minute totals were written with a less experienced HCUP user in mind; experienced HCUP users often complete the same manual steps much faster, so the ratio should not be read as a universal constant across skill levels. HCUPtools supports all four types of healthcare analytics: descriptive (historical trend analysis), diagnostic (pattern identification), predictive (data preparation for modeling), and prescriptive (evidence-based decision support). The package facilitates compliance with HCUP data use policies by ensuring direct access to official sources and automatic citation generation. HCUPtools is available on the Comprehensive R Archive Network (CRAN) and has been designed to improve the efficiency and reproducibility of healthcare data analysis workflows.