[Federal Register Volume 63, Number 48 (Thursday, March 12, 1998)]
[Notices]
[Pages 12103-12104]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 98-6297]


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DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES

Health Resources and Services Administration


Agency Information Collection Activities: Proposed Collection: 
Comment Request

    In compliance with the requirement for opportunity for public 
comment on proposed data collection projects (section 3506(c)(2)(A) of 
Title 44, United States Code, as amended by the Paperwork Reduction Act 
of 1995, Pub. L. 104-13), the Health Resources and Services 
Administration (HRSA) will publish periodic summaries of proposed 
projects being developed for submission to OMB under the Paperwork 
Reduction Act of 1995. To request more information on the proposed 
project or to obtain a copy of the data collection plans and draft 
instruments, call the HRSA Reports Clearance Officer on (301) 443-1129.
    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 Project: Use of Emergency Departments by HCH Clients--New

--The Health Care for the Homeless (HCH) Program is a Federal grant 
program authorized by section 330(h) of the Public Health Service Act. 
The HCH Program seeks to improve access by homeless individuals to 
primary health care and substance abuse treatment. There are 122 
community-based organization grantees which are community and migrant 
health centers, local health departments and community coalitions. More 
than 450,000 clients have been served. Specific activities of the HCH 
program are:
     Providing for primary health care and substance abuse 
services at accessible locations;
     Providing round-the-clock access to emergency services and 
referring to hospital inpatient and/or to mental health services as 
needed;
     Helping homeless persons to establish eligibility for 
assistance and to obtain services under entitlement programs.
    Data will be collected in six East Coast cities in which there are 
Health Care for the Homeless (HCH) grantees. Between 200-250 single 
homeless persons will be interviewed at either homeless shelters or 
soup kitchens in each of the six sites. The objective is a total sample 
of 1,350.
    The main research questions the data collection is intended to 
answer are:
     Is there a difference in the level of use of hospital 
emergency departments by HCH program users and HCH program non-users?
     Is there a difference in the inappropriate use of hospital 
emergency departments by HCH program users and HCH program non-users?
     Is hospital emergency department use by homeless people a 
reasonable indicator of an HCH program's impact or success?
     Do differences in emergency department utilization among 
the homeless vary across specific broad classes of medical conditions?
     Do the differences in emergency department utilization 
among the homeless vary by age, gender, ethnicity, insurance, status or 
family status?
    There will be five categories of questions respondents will be 
asked: Emergency Room Visits, Impatient Hospital Utilization, 
Outpatient Health Care Utilization, Health Status and Perceived Need 
for Health Care, and Demographics.
    The estimated respondent burden is as follows:

[[Page 12104]]



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                                                 Number of      Responses per      Hours per         Response   
             Type of respondent                 respondents       respondent        response      burden (hours)
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Homeless individuals........................            1350                1              .25              337 
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    Send comments to Patricia Royston, HRSA Reports Clearance Officer, 
Room 14-36, Parklawn Building, 5600 Fishers Lane, Rockville, MD 20857. 
Written comments should be received within 60 days of this notice.

    Dated: March 2, 1998.
Jane Harrison,
Acting Director, Division of Policy Review and Coordination.
[FR Doc. 98-6297 Filed 3-11-98; 8:45 am]
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