[Federal Register Volume 68, Number 245 (Monday, December 22, 2003)]
[Notices]
[Pages 71111-71112]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 03-31429]


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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 the 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 (Public Law 104-13), the Health Resources and Services 
Administration (HRSA) publishes periodic summaries of proposed projects 
being developed for submission to the Office of Management and Budget 
(OMB) under the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995. To request more 
information on the proposed grant information collection activity or to 
obtain a copy of the data collection plan and draft instruments, call 
the HRSA Reports Clearance Officer at (301) 443-1129.
    Comments are invited on: (a) Whether the proposed collection of 
information is necessary for proper performance of grantee functions 
including whether the information will have practical utility; (b) the 
accuracy of the burden estimate 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 
information collection burden on respondents, including the use of 
automated collection methods or other types of information technology.

Proposed Project: Ryan White Comprehensive AIDS Resources Emergency 
(CARE) Act Title I Grant Application Supplements: In Use Without 
Approval

    The CARE Act (codified under Title XXVI of the Public Health 
Service Act) was first enacted by Congress in 1990, and reauthorized in 
1996 and 2000. It addresses the unmet health needs of persons living 
with HIV disease by funding primary health care and support services 
that enhance access to and retention in care. The CARE Act funded 
services reach over 500,000 individuals; after Medicaid and Medicare, 
it is the largest single source of Federal funding for HIV/AIDS care 
for low-income, uninsured, and underinsured Americans. Title I under 
the CARE Act provides emergency assistance to eligible metropolitan 
areas (EMAs) that have been most severely affected by the HIV epidemic, 
for the purpose of developing or enhancing a continuum of high quality, 
community-based care for low-income individuals and families. HRSA 
disburses approximately one-half of the Title I

[[Page 71112]]

funds among 51 EMAs based on a Congressionally mandated formula. The 
remaining funds are available on a competitive basis to those same EMAs 
that demonstrate severe need for supplemental assistance to combat the 
HIV epidemic, and an ability to disburse and use supplemental resources 
in a manner that is immediately responsive to the local epidemic and 
cost effective.
    The CARE Act requires local planning councils to establish Title I 
priorities and allocate funds, taking into account critical factors. 
These include the: size and demographics of the local HIV epidemic; 
demonstrated (or probable) cost effectiveness and outcome effectiveness 
of proposed strategies and interventions; priorities of the communities 
with HIV disease for whom the services are intended; coordination of 
HIV care services delivery with HIV prevention programs and programs 
for the prevention and treatment of substance abuse; availability of 
other governmental and nongovernmental resources; and capacity 
development needs resulting from disparities in the availability of 
treatment and services in underserved communities. Other planning 
council duties include developing a comprehensive plan for the delivery 
of services and evaluating the effectiveness of administrative 
mechanisms used by the grantee to disburse (contract) the funds 
locally.
    The Title I Grant Application Supplements have been designed to 
collect information from EMAs in a consistent, standard way when they 
apply for new or competing continuation grant funds in a combined 
formula and supplemental grant application. This information is needed 
to determine that funds are being used as intended by the Congress and 
in compliance with CARE Act mandates, and that supplemental funds are 
awarded to grantees on the basis of objective criteria consistent with 
CARE Act requirements. This includes requirements that grantees 
demonstrate: (a) Severity of need for emergency assistance to combat 
the HIV epidemic, including the unmet needs of persons who know their 
HIV status but are not yet in care, (Supplements 1, 4 and 5); (b) a 
functioning planning council that is in conformance with statutory 
membership requirements and carrying out mandated duties and 
responsibilities, (Supplement 2); (c) an ability to use Title I grant 
resources in a manner that is immediately responsive to the local 
epidemic and cost effective, and in compliance with payer of last 
resort, maintenance of effort and related requirements, (Supplements 3 
and 6); and (d) a comprehensive plan for the delivery of HIV/AIDS care 
services that is responsive to the local epidemic and unmet needs, 
(Supplements 7 and 8).
    In addition, HRSA uses the collected information as a benchmark for 
monitoring grantee performance during the fiscal year; to identify 
individual and cross-cutting grantee technical assistance needs; and to 
detect emerging HIV/AIDS care services issues that may require changes 
in existing program policies or procedures.
    The Title I Application Supplements will be transmitted by mail and 
electronically to all Title I EMAs and made available through the HRSA 
web site. Applicants will submit the Supplements electronically along 
with Form PHS-5161-1 (Revised 7/00), SF-424 and the program narrative 
portion of their application, using the Grants Management electronic 
transmission mechanisms established by HRSA. The Supplements will 
include check box responses; fields for reporting numeric fiscal and 
epidemiological data; and text boxes for describing other required 
information. The Supplements will automatically generate totals when 
appropriate, and have other automated fields to minimize the time 
required to insert identifying information.
    The Supplements will require Title I applicants/grantees to report 
local epidemiological information and some fiscal and programmatic data 
collected from Title I funded contractors (sub-grantees), which 
grantees have been collecting and reporting since FY 1995 or earlier. 
The approximate response burden for applicants/grantees is estimated 
as:

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                                          Estimated
     Estimated number of grantee        responses  per    Total number of       Hours per       Estimated total
             respondents                   grantee           responses           response         hour burden
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51..................................                 1                 51                 16                816
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    Send comments to Susan G. Queen, PhD, HRSA Reports Clearance 
Officer, Room 14-33, Parklawn Building, 5600 Fishers Lane, Rockville, 
MD 20857. Written comments should be received within 60 day of this 
notice.

    Dated: December 16, 2003.
Tina M. Cheatham,
Acting Director, Division of Policy Review and Coordination.
[FR Doc. 03-31429 Filed 12-19-03; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4165-15-P