Medicare Program; Open Town Hall Meeting on November 8, 1999 To Present an Overview of the Home Health Prospective Payment System Proposed Rule Followed by a General Home Health Listening Session

DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES

Health Care Financing Administration

42 CFR Parts 409, 410, 411, 413, 424 and 484

[HCFA-1103-N]

Medicare Program; Open Town Hall Meeting on November 8, 1999 To

Present an Overview of the Home Health Prospective Payment System

Proposed Rule Followed by a General Home Health Listening Session

AGENCY: Health Care Financing Administration (HCFA), HHS.

ACTION: Notice of meeting.

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SUMMARY: This notice announces a public meeting to provide information

on the home health prospective payment system (HH PPS) proposed rule.

The proposed rule will be published in October 1999 in the Federal

Register. In addition, there will be a general home health listening

session.

DATES: The HH PPS town hall meeting is scheduled for Monday, November

8, 1999, from 10 a.m. until 3 p.m., E.S.T. The HH PPS presentation will

be followed by the general home health listening session, which is

scheduled for Monday, November 8, 1999, from 3:15 p.m. until 5:15 p.m.,

E.S.T.

ADDRESSES: The meeting will be held in the HCFA Central Office Main

Auditorium, 7500 Security Boulevard, Baltimore, MD 21244 with satellite

broadcast viewing areas located in Boston, Chicago, and Dallas. The

general home health listening session will be held in the HCFA Central

Office Main Auditorium only, and there will be no satellite broadcast

of this session.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Sharon Ventura, (410) 786-1985 (for information on the overview of the

HH PPS proposed rule).

Gina Perantoni, (410) 786-3219 (for information on the general home

health listening session).

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Background

The home health prospective payment system (HH PPS) proposed rule

will be published in the Federal Register in October 1999. We are

planning to hold a town hall meeting on Monday, November 8, 1999, which

is during the 60-day comment period to brief the public on the proposed

rule. We will not be accepting oral comments on the rule at this

meeting. Written comments during the 60-day comment period are

[[Page 57613]]

welcome. We anticipate interested parties to include: the home health

agency (HHA) industry association representatives, HHA administrators

and owners, home care professionals, university-based and private

research organizations, Congressional members and staff, home care

software vendors, beneficiary advocates, and any other interested

parties.

In this meeting, we will provide an overview of the HH PPS proposed

rule and will focus on a number of its key components and present past

and current research efforts related to the HH PPS.

This meeting will be broadcast live from the HCFA Central Office

Main Auditorium and will include three satellite broadcast viewing

sites in Boston, Chicago, and Dallas. All four sites have a capacity of

approximately 500 individuals. The audiences viewing the broadcast via

satellite will have the ability to participate in the question-and-

answer period at the end of this presentation. For those who cannot

attend in Baltimore, the address of the downlink sites, registration

information, and satellite coordinates for this presentation will be

posted on the HCFA website www.hcfa.gov. Once individuals are on this

website, they will need to highlight the red bullet, in the lower right

hand corner, titled ``Events, Meetings, and Workgroups.''

The meeting will conclude with a question-and-answer session

including the HCFA Central Office location as well as the three-

satellite downlink sites. The toll-free phone number to call to

participate will be broadcast during the meeting.

At the conclusion of the satellite broadcast, a 2-hour listening

session is planned for participants in Baltimore only in the HCFA

Central Office Main Auditorium during which time we will listen to

concerns related to home health issues in general. This is a listening

session only and not part of the HH PPS overview presentation.

In order to participate in the general home health listening

session, individuals must sign up at 10 a.m. on the day of the town

hall meeting. Presenters will be limited to the first 20 people who

sign up. A sign up sheet will be available outside of the HCFA Main

Auditorium. Individuals must limit their presentation to 3 minutes in

length. We also ask that the oral presenters provide their statements

in writing. Individuals who are unable to present oral statements may

submit their statements in writing. We believe this will enable us to

better consider all the concerns raised during this general home health

listening session.

While the meeting is open to the public, attendance is limited to

space available. Individuals must register in advance as described

below.

Registration

AFYA Inc. will handle registration for all four meeting sites.

Individuals must register following the directions posted on the HCFA

website, www.hcfa.gov. Once individuals are on this website, they will

need to highlight the red bullet, in the lower right hand corner,

titled ``Events, Meetings, and Workgroups.''

Each participant will receive a confirmation letter as receipt of

registration. Each participant will be provided with a meeting agenda

at the time of the meeting. If individuals have any questions regarding

registration, they should contact the AFYA Event Management Help Desk

at (800) 377-9921.

Authority: Section 1895 of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C.

1395fff).

Dated: October 21, 1999.

Michael M. Hash,

Deputy Administrator, Health Care Financing Administration.

[FR Doc. 99-27995 Filed 10-25-99; 8:45 am]

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