Agency Information Collection Activities: Proposed Collections; Comment Request

DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES

Office of the Secretary

Agency Information Collection Activities: Proposed Collections;

Comment Request

The Department of Health and Human Services, Office of the

Secretary will periodically publish summaries of proposed information

collections projects and solicit public comments in compliance with the

requirements of Section 3506(c)(2)(A) of the Paperwork Reduction Act of

1995. To request more information on the project or to obtain a copy of

the information collection plans and instruments, call the OS Reports

Clearance Officer on (202) 690-6207.

Comments are invited on: (a) Whether the proposed collection of

information is necessary for the proper performance of the functions of

the agency, including whether the information shall have practical

utility; (b) the accuracy of the agency's estimate of the burden of the

proposed collection of information; (c) ways to enhance the quality,

utility and clarity of the information to be collected; and (d) ways to

minimize the burden of the collection of information on respondents,

including through the use of automated collection techniques or other

forms of information technology.

Proposed Projects 1. Study of Medicare Home Health Practice

Variations--NEW--The Office of the Assistant Secretary for Planning and

Evaluation is proposing a study which will examine how patient,

provider, agency, market and regulatory factors affect variations in

home health practice. A sample of 48 Medicare-certified home health

agencies (from eight states) will be studied. Within each of these

agencies, 24 patients (with congestive heart failure or diabetes) will

be sampled. The results will identify agency characteristics and

behaviors that are related to differences in lengths of stay for

patients with similar risk factors.-- Respondents: For-profit, Non-

profit Institutions; Burden Information for the Administrator

Questionnaire--Number of Respondents: 48; Burden per Response: 36

minutes: Burden: 29 hours--Burden Information for the Care Provider

Questionnaire--Number of Responses: 1152; Burden per Response: 1 hour:

Burden: 1152 hours--Total Burden: 1181 hours.

Send comments to Cynthia Agens Bauer, OS Reports Clearance Officer,

Room 503H, Humphrey Building, 200 Independence Avenue S.W., Washington,

DC, 20201. Written comments should be received within 60 days of this

notice.

Dated: May 11, 1998.

Dennis P. Williams,

Deputy Assistant Secretary, Budget.

[FR Doc. 98-13476 Filed 5-20-98; 8:45 am]

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