[Federal Register Volume 66, Number 229 (Wednesday, November 28, 2001)]
[Notices]
[Pages 59439-59440]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 01-29541]


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DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES

National Institutes of Health


Office of Loan Repayment and Scholarship; Submission for OMB 
Review; Comment Request; National Institutes of Health Loan Repayment 
Programs

SUMMARY: Under the provision of section 3507(a)(1)(D) of the Paperwork 
Reduction Act of 1995, the Office of the Director, the National 
Institutes of Health (NIH), has submitted to the Office of Management 
and Budget (OMB) a request to review and approve the information 
collection listed below. This proposed information collection was 
previously published in the Federal Register on August 20, 2001, pages 
43590 to 43591 and allowed 60 days for public comment. No public 
comments were received. The purpose of this notice is to allow an 
additional 30 days for public comment. The National Institutes of 
Health may not conduct or sponsor, and the respondent is not required 
to respond to, an information collection that has been extended, 
revised, or implemented on or after October 1, 1995, unless it displays 
a currently valid OMB control number.
    Proposed Collection: Title: National Institutes of Health Loan 
Repayment Programs. Type of Information Collection Request: Revision of 
a currently approved collection (OMB No. 0925-0361, expiration date 11/
30/01). Form Numbers: NIH 2674-1, NIH 2674-2, NIH 2674-3, NIH 2674-4, 
NIH 2674-5, NIH 2674-6, NIH 2674-7, NIH 2674-8, NIH 2674-9, NIH 2674-
10, NIH 2674-11, and NIH 2674-12. Need and Use of Information 
Collection: The NIH makes available financial assistance, in the form 
of educational loan repayment, to M.D., Ph.D., Pharm.D., D.D.S., 
D.M.D., D.P.M., D.C., and N.D. degree holders, or the equivalent, who 
perform clinical, biomedical, contraception and infertility, 
biobehavioral, minority health disparities, or other health disparities 
research for a minimum of 2 years (3 years for the General Research 
LRP). For intramural LRPs, the qualifying research must be performed in 
NIH intramural laboratories. For extramural LRPs, the qualifying 
research may be performed as NIH extramural grantees, as employees or 
affiliates of the National Institute of Child Health and Human 
Development extramural sites, or as employees or affiliates of other 
public or private research institutions.
    The AIDS Research Loan Repayment Program (AIDS-LRP) is authorized 
by section 487A of the Public Health Service (PHS) Act (42 U.S.C. 288-
1); the Contraception and Infertility LRP (CIR-LRP) is authorized by 
section 487B of the PHS Act (42 U.S.C. 288-2); the General Research LRP 
(GR-LRP) is authorized by section 487C of the PHS Act (42 U.S.C. 288-
3); the Clinical Research LRP for Individuals from Disadvantaged 
Backgrounds (CR-LRP) is authorized by section 487E (42 U.S.C. 288-5). 
The Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2001 (Pub. L. 106-554) amended 
section 487E of the PHS Act to allow expansion of the

[[Page 59440]]

existing CR-LRP to include health professionals who are not employees 
of the NIH. The expanded program is known as the Extramural Clinical 
Research LRP for Individuals from Disadvantaged Backgrounds (ECR-LRP); 
the LRP for Minority Health Disparities Research (HDR-LRP) is 
authorized by section 485G of the PHS Act (43 U.S.C. 287c-33); the LRP 
Regarding Clinical Researchers (LRP-CR) is authorized by section 487F 
(42 U.S.C. 288-5a); and the Pediatric Research LRP (PR-LRP) is 
authorized by section 487F (42 U.S.C. 288-6).
    The loan repayment programs provide for the repayment of up to 
$35,000 a year of the principal and interest of the educational loan 
debt of qualified health professionals who agree to conduct qualifying 
research for each year of obligated service. Applicants must have total 
qualifying educational debt equal to or in excess of 20 percent of 
their annual salary or compensation on the expected date of program 
eligibility. The information proposed for collection will be used to 
determine an applicant's eligibility for participation in the program. 
Frequency of Response: Initial application and annual renewal 
application. Affected Public: Applicants, financial institutions, 
research institutions, recommenders. Type of Respondents: Physicians, 
other scientific or medical personnel, and institutional 
representatives. The annual reporting burden for the intramural 
programs (AIDS-LRP, CR-LRP, and GR-LRP) is as follows:

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                                                 Number of       Frequency of    Average hours     Annual  hour
            Type of  respondents                respondents        response       per response        burden
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Applicants..................................              75              1.0            11.52           864.00
Recommenders................................             225              1.0             0.50           112.50
Financial Institutions......................             375              1.0             0.33           123.86
                                             -----------------                                  ----------------
    Totals..................................             675   ...............  ...............        1,100.25
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    The annual reporting burden for the extramural programs (CIR-LRP, 
ECR-LRP, HDR-LRP, LRP-CR and PR-LRP) is as follows:

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                                                 Number of       Frequency of    Average hours     Annual  hour
            Type of  respondents                respondents        response       per response        burden
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Applicants..................................             670              1.0            12.20            8,174
Recommenders................................           2,010              1.0             0.50            1,005
Advisors/Supervisors........................             670              1.0             1.50            1,005
Research Institutions.......................             670              1.0             0.33              221
Financial Institutions......................           3,350              1.0             0.33            1,106
                                             -----------------                                  ----------------
    Totals..................................           7,370   ...............  ...............          11,511
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    The annualized cost to respondents is estimated at $361,193. There 
are no capital costs, operating costs, or maintenance costs to report.
    Request for Comments: Written comments and/or suggestions from the 
public and affected agencies are invited on one or more of the 
following points: (1) Whether the proposed collection of information is 
necessary for the proper performance of the function of the agency, 
including whether the information will have practical utility; (2) The 
accuracy of the agency's estimate of the burden of the proposed 
collection of information, including the validity of the methodology 
and assumptions used; (3) Ways to enhance the quality, utility, and 
clarity of the information to be collected; and (4) Ways to minimize 
the burden of the collection of information on those who are to 
respond, including the use of appropriate automated, electronic, 
mechanical, or other technological collection techniques or other forms 
of information technology.
    Direct Comments to OMB: Written comments and/or suggestions 
regarding the item(s) contained in this notice, especially regarding 
the estimated public burden and associated response time, should be 
directed to the: Office of Management and Budget, Office of Regulatory 
Affairs, New Executive Office Building, Room 10235, Washington, DC 
20503, Attention: Desk Officer for NIH. Additional information on the 
proposed project or a copy of the data collection plans and instruments 
may be obtained by calling or writing: Marc S. Horowitz, J.D., 
Director, Office of Loan Repayment and Scholarship, National Institutes 
of Health, 2 Center Drive, Room 2E30, Bethesda, Maryland 20892-0230 or 
call non-toll-free (301) 402-5666 or e-mail your request, including 
your address, to [email protected].
    Comments Due Date: Comments regarding this information collection 
are best assured of having their full effect if received within 30 days 
of the date of this publication.

    Dated: November 19, 2001.
Yvonne T. Maddox,
Acting Deputy Director, National Institutes of Health.
[FR Doc. 01-29541 Filed 11-27-01; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4140-01-M