[Federal Register Volume 72, Number 56 (Friday, March 23, 2007)]
[Notices]
[Pages 13795-13796]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E7-5305]



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DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES

Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services

[CMS-1305-N2]


Medicare Program; Request for Nominations to the Advisory Panel 
on Ambulatory Payment Classification Groups

AGENCY: Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS), Department of 
Health and Human Services (DHHS).

ACTION: Notice.

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SUMMARY: This notice invites nominations of members to the Advisory 
Panel on Ambulatory Payment Classification (APC) Groups (the Panel). 
There will be two vacancies on the Panel as of October 1, 2007. 
Consequently, this solicitation is for two new members.
    The purpose of the Panel is to review the APC groups and their 
associated weights and to advise the Secretary, DHHS, (the Secretary) 
and the Administrator, CMS, (the Administrator) concerning the clinical 
integrity of the APC groups and their associated weights. We consider 
the Panel's advice as CMS prepares its annual updates of the hospital 
Outpatient Prospective Payment System (OPPS).
    The Secretary rechartered the Panel in 2006 for a 2-year period 
effective through November 21, 2008.
    Nominations: We will consider nominations if they are received no 
later than 5 p.m. on May 30, 2007. Please mail or hand deliver 
nominations to the following address: CMS; Attn: Shirl Ackerman-Ross, 
Designated Federal Official (DFO), Advisory Panel on APC Groups; Center 
for Medicare Management, Hospital & Ambulatory Policy Group, Division 
of Outpatient Care; 7500 Security Boulevard, Mail Stop C4-05-17; 
Baltimore, MD 21244-1850.
    Web site: For additional information on the APC Panel and updates 
to the Panel's activities, search our Web site at the following: http://www.cms.hhs.gov/FACA/05_AdvisoryPanelonAmbulatory 
PaymentClassificationGroups.asp#TopOfPage.
    E-Mail Address: The E-mail address for the Panel is as follows: 
[email protected]. News media representatives must contact our 
Public Affairs Office at (202) 690-6145.
    Advisory Committees' Information Lines: The CMS Advisory 
Committees' Information Line is 1-877-449-5659 (toll free) and (410) 
786-9379 (local).

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

I. Background

    The Secretary is required by section 1833(t)(9)(A) of the Social 
Security Act (the Act), [as amended by section 201(h) of the Medicare, 
Medicaid, and SCHIP Balanced Budget Refinement Act of 1999 (BBRA) (Pub. 
L. 106-113), and redesignated by section 202(a)(2) of the BBRA] to 
consult with an expert outside advisory panel regarding the clinical 
integrity of the APC groups and weights that are components of the 
hospital OPPS.
    The Charter requires that the Panel meet up to three times 
annually. We consider the technical advice provided by the Panel as we 
prepare the proposed and final rules to update the OPPS for the next 
calendar year.
    The Panel shall consist of a chair and up to 15 members who are 
full-time employees of hospitals, hospital systems, or other Medicare 
providers that are subject to the OPPS. (For purposes of the Panel, 
consultants or independent contractors are not considered to be full-
time employees in these organizations.)
    The Secretary or Administrator selects the Panel membership based 
upon either self-nominations or nominations submitted by providers or 
interested organizations.
    The current Panel members are as follows: (The asterisk [*] 
indicates Panel members whose terms begin on March 1, 2007, and the 
double asterisks [**] indicate Panel members whose terms begin on April 
1, 2007. Panel members with three asterisks [***] are those members 
whose terms expire on or before September 30, 2007.)
     E.L. Hambrick, M.D., J.D., Chair, a CMS Medical Officer.
     Gloryanne Bryant, B.S., RHIA, RHIT, CCS.
     Hazel Kimmel, R.N., CCS, CPC.
     Sandra J. Metzler, M.B.A., RHIA.***
     Thomas M. Munger, M.D.
     Beverly Khnie Philip, M.D.**
     Louis Potters, M.D.
     Russ Ranallo, M.S., B.S.*
     James V. Rawson, M.D.
     Michael A. Ross, M.D.**
     Lou Ann Schraffenberger, M.B.A., RHIA.
     Judie S. Snipes, R.N., M.B.A., CHE.
     Patricia Spencer-Cisek, M.S., APRN-BC, AOCN[supreg].*
     Timothy Gene Tyler, Pharm.D.***
     Kim Allen Williams, M.D.
     Robert M. Zwolak, M.D.
    Panel members serve without compensation, according to an advance 
written agreement; however, CMS reimburses travel, meals, lodging, and 
related expenses for the meeting in accordance with standard Government 
travel regulations.
    CMS has a special interest in attempting to ensure--while taking 
into account the nominee pool--that the Panel is diverse in all 
respects to the following: geography; rural or urban practice; race, 
ethnicity, sex, and disability; medical or technical specialty; and 
type of hospital, hospital health system, or other Medicare provider.
    The Secretary, or his designee, appoints new members to the Panel 
from among those candidates determined to have the required expertise. 
New appointments are made in a manner that ensures a balanced 
membership.

II. Criteria for Nominees

    All members must have technical expertise to enable them to 
participate fully in the work of the Panel. This expertise encompasses 
hospital payment systems; hospital medical-care delivery systems; 
provider billing systems; APC groups; Physicians' Current Procedural 
Terminology and alpha-numeric Healthcare Common Procedure Coding System 
codes; and the use and payment of drugs and medical devices in the 
outpatient setting, as well as other forms of relevant expertise.
    It is not necessary for a nominee to possess expertise in all of 
the areas listed, but each must have a minimum of 5 years experience 
and currently have full-time employment in his or her area of 
expertise. Members of the Panel serve terms up to 4 years, based on the 
needs of the Panel and contingent upon the rechartering of the Panel.
    Any interested person or organization may nominate one or more 
qualified individuals. Self-nominations will also be accepted. Each 
nomination must include the following:
     Letter of Nomination,
     Curriculum Vita of the nominee, and
     Written statement from the nominee that the nominee is 
willing to serve on the Panel under the conditions described in this 
notice and further specified in the Charter.

III. Copies of the Charter

    To obtain a copy of the Panel's Charter, submit a written request 
to the DFO at the address provided or by e-mail at [email protected], or call her at 410-786-4474. Copies of the 
Charter are also available on the Internet at the following: http://
www.cms.hhs.gov/FACA/05--AdvisoryPanelon

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AmbulatoryPaymentClassificationGroups.aspTopOfPage.

    Authority: Section 1833(t)(9)(A) of the Act (42 U.S.C. 
1395l(t)(9)(A)). The Panel is governed by the provisions of Pub. L. 
92-463, as amended (5 U.S.C. Appendix 2).

(Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance Program No. 93.773, 
Medicare--Hospital Insurance; and Program No. 93.774, Medicare--
Supplementary Medical Insurance Program)

    Dated: March 8, 2007.
Leslie V. Norwalk,
Acting Administrator, Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services.
[FR Doc. E7-5305 Filed 3-22-07; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4120-01-P