Emergency Clearance: Public Information Collection Requirements Submitted to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB)

DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES

Health Care Financing Administration

[Document Identifier: HCFA-R-260]

Emergency Clearance: Public Information Collection Requirements

Submitted to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB)

AGENCY: Health Care Financing Administration.

In compliance with the requirement of section 3506(c)(2)(A) of the

Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, the Health Care Financing

Administration (HCFA), Department of Health and Human Services, is

publishing the following summary of proposed collections for public

comment. Interested persons are invited to send comments regarding this

burden estimate or any other aspect of this collection of information,

including any of the following subjects: (1) The necessity and utility

of the proposed information collection for the proper performance of

the agency's functions; (2) the accuracy of the estimated burden; (3)

ways to enhance the quality, utility, and clarity of the information to

be collected; and (4) the use of automated collection techniques or

other forms of information technology to minimize the information

collection burden.

We are, however, requesting an emergency review of the information

collection referenced below. In compliance with the requirement of

section 3506(c)(2)(A) of the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, we have

submitted to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) the following

requirements for emergency review. Due to the fact that the collection

of this information is needed before the expiration of the normal time

limits under OMB's regulations at 5 CFR, Part 1320, we are requesting

an emergency review.

The Balanced Budget Act of 1997 (BBA) included a number of quality

assurance provisions for managed care organizations contracting with

Medicare and Medicaid. The Quality Improvement System for Managed Care

(QISMC), developed with the assistance of State and industry

representatives, consists of a set of standards and guidelines that are

designed to implement the BBA provisions and the regulations, HCFA-

1030-FC (which establishes the Medicare+Choice program) and HCFA-2001-P

(which revises the Medicaid managed care program). For Medicare, the

QISMC document is equivalent to a program manual. As such, the document

simply represents HCFA's administrative interpretation of the

Medicare+Choice requirements relating to an organization's operation

and performance in the areas of quality measurement and improvement and

the delivery of health care and enrollee services. These standards and

guidelines are derivatives of the regulatory requirements, and are

necessary to implement the requirements in a consistent manner. For

Medicaid, the standards and guidelines are tools for States to use at

their discretion in ensuring the quality of managed care organizations

with Medicaid contracts. The QISMC standards for Medicaid managed care

organizations parallel many of the BBA quality assurance provisions and

were developed in conjunction with the regulation HCFA-2001-P.

Therefore, while States are free to develop their own standard for

Medicaid managed care organizations to meet the quality assurance

provisions of the BBA, QISMC is a recommended vehicle for consistency

and compliance with the BBA. Further, use of the QISMC

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standards assures States that the quality standards they adopt most

closely resemble the standards HCFA will be using with Medicare+Choice

organizations.

The purpose of this submission is to request approval of use of the

QISMC standards and guidelines. It should be noted that QISMC was

developed with State and industry participation. In this OMB

submission, we are particularly soliciting comment on whether these

QISMC standards impose additional reporting requirements beyond those

explicitly articulated in regulations HCFA-1030-IFC and HCFA-2001-P. In

the mean time we have assigned one token hour of burden for these

requirements.

HCFA is requesting OMB review and approval of this collection

within ten working days of publication of this notice in the Federal

Register, with a 180-day approval period. Written comments and

recommendations will be accepted from the public if received by the

individuals designated below by nine working days of the publication of

this notice. During this 180-day period, we will publish a separate

Federal Register notice announcing the initiation of an extensive 60-

day agency review and public comment period on these requirements. We

will submit the requirements for OMB review and an extension of this

emergency approval.

Type of Information Request: New Collection.

Title of Information Collection: Quality Improvement System for

Managed Care.

Form Number: HCFA-R-260 (OMB approval #: 0938-NEW)

Use: The primary purpose of the QISMC standards and guidelines is

to implement regulatory requirements relating to Medicare and Medicaid

managed care organizations' operation and performance in the areas of

quality measurement and improvement and the delivery of health care and

enrollee services.

Frequency: Annual.

Affected Public: Business or other for-profit.

Number of Respondents: 952 (450 Medicare and 502 Medicaid managed

care organizations)

Total Annual Responses: 952.

Total Annual Hours Requested: 1 hour.

To obtain copies of the supporting statement for the proposed

paperwork collections referenced above, access HCFA's WEB SITE ADDRESS

at http://www.hcfa.gov/regs/prdact95.htm, or E-mail your request,

including your address and phone number, to P[email protected], or call

the Reports Clearance Office on (410) 786-1326.

Interested persons are invited to send comments regarding the

burden or any other aspect of these collections of information

requirements. However, as noted above, comments on these information

collection and record keeping requirements must be mailed and/or faxed

to the designees referenced below within nine working days of the

publication of this notice in the Federal Register:

Health Care Financing Administration, Office of Information Services,

Security and Standards Group, Division of HCFA Enterprise Standards,

Room N2-14-26, 7500 Security Boulevard, Baltimore, MD 21244-1850.Fax

Number: (410) 786-0262, Attn: Louis Blank HCFA-R-260

and,

Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs, Office of Management and

Budget, Room 10235, New Executive Office Building, Washington, DC

20503, Fax Number: (202) 395-6974 or (202) 395-5167 Attn: Allison

Herron Eydt, HCFA Desk Officer.

Dated: September 18, 1998.

John P. Burke III,

HCFA Reports Clearance Officer, HCFA, Office of Information Services,

Security and Standards Group, Division of HCFA Enterprise Standards.

[FR Doc. 98-26876 Filed 10-6-98; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 4120-03-P