[Federal Register Volume 73, Number 47 (Monday, March 10, 2008)]
[Notices]
[Pages 12742-12744]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E8-4601]


-----------------------------------------------------------------------

DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES

Health Resources and Services Administration


Statement of Organization, Functions and Delegations of Authority

    This notice amends Part R of the Statement of Organization, 
Functions and Delegations of Authority of the Department of Health and 
Human Services (HHS), Health Resources and Services Administration 
(HRSA) (60 FR 56605-56606 as amended November 6, 1995; and as last 
amended at 73 FR 4877, dated January 28, 2008.)
    This notice reflects organizational changes in the Health Resources 
and Services Administration, Bureau of Health Professions (RP). 
Specifically, this notice updates the mission statement of the Bureau 
of Health Professions (RP) and updates the functional statements of the 
Bureau of Health Professions.

Chapter RP, Office of the Administrator

Section RP, 00 Mission

    Delete in its entirety and replace with the following:
    Increase the population's access to health care by providing 
national leadership in the development, distribution and retention of a 
diverse, culturally competent health workforce that can adapt to the 
population's changing health care needs and provide the highest quality 
of care for all.

Section RP-10, Organization

    Delete in its entirety and replace with the following:
    The Bureau of Health Professions (BHPr) is headed by an Associate 
Administrator, who reports directly to the Administrator, Health 
Resources and Services Administration. The Bureau of Health Professions 
includes the following components:
    (1) Office of the Associate Administrator (RP);
    (2) Office of Shortage Designation (RP2);
    (3) Office of Workforce Policy and Performance Management (RP3);
    (4) Division of Nursing (RPB);
    (5) Division of Medicine and Dentistry (RPC);
    (6) Division of Student Loans and Scholarships (RPD);
    (7) Division of Diversity and Interdisciplinary Education (RPF); 
and
    (8) Division of Practitioner Data Banks (RPG).

Section RP-20, Functions

    Delete the functional statement for the Bureau of Health 
Professions (RP) in its entirety and replace it with the following:

Bureau of Health Professions (RP)

    Provides national leadership in coordinating, evaluating, and 
supporting the development and utilization of the Nation's health 
personnel. Specifically: (1) Directs the national health professions 
education, student assistance, and development programs and activities; 
(2) provides policy guidance and staff direction to the Bureau; (3) 
maintains liaison with other Federal and non-Federal organizations and 
agencies with health personnel development interest and 
responsibilities; (4) provides guidance and direction for technical 
assistance activities in the international aspects of health personnel 
development; (5) provides guidance and assistance to the Regional 
Health Administrators or regional staff as appropriate; (6) directs and 
coordinates Bureau programs in support of Equal Employment Opportunity; 
(7) coordinates and provides guidance on the Freedom of Information Act 
and Privacy Act activities; (8) plans, directs, coordinates, and 
evaluates Bureau-wide administrative management activities; and (9) 
serves as the Bureau's focal point for correspondence control.

Office of Shortage Designation (RP2)

    Provides national leadership and management of the designation of 
health professional shortage areas and medically-underserved 
populations. Specifically: (1) Maintains and enhances the Agency's 
critical role in the Nation's efforts to address equitable distribution 
of health professionals and access to health care for underserved 
populations; (2) encourages and fosters an ongoing, positive working 
relationship with other Federal, State and private sector partners 
regarding health professional shortage areas and medically-underserved 
populations; (3) approves designation requests and finalizes 
designation policies and procedures for both current and proposed 
designation criteria; (4) negotiates and approves State designation 
agreements (e.g., use of databases, population estimates, Statewide 
Rational Service Areas); and (5) oversees grants to State primary care 
offices.

Office of Workforce Policy and Performance Management (RP3)

    Serves as the Bureau focal point for program planning, evaluation, 
coordination, and analysis, including analysis and operations review of 
Information Management systems; health professions data analysis and 
research; and for health professions quality assurance efforts. 
Maintains liaison with governmental, professional, voluntary, and other 
public and private organizations, institutions, and groups for the 
purpose of providing information exchange. Specifically the office is 
responsible for the following activities: (1) Stimulates, guides, and 
coordinates program planning, reporting, and evaluation activities of 
the Divisions and staff offices; (2) provides staff services to the 
Associate Administrator for program and strategic planning and its 
relation to the budgetary and regulatory processes; (3) develops issue 
papers and Congressional reports relating to Bureau programs; (4) 
coordinates the development and implementation of the Bureau's 
evaluation program; (5) coordinates Bureau performance measurement and 
reporting; (6) sponsors and conducts research, special studies, and 
forecasting models on important issues that affect the national, State 
and local health workforce including studies relevant to current and 
future policies of the Bureau and their impact on the supply and demand 
for health professionals and the health industry at large; (7) provides 
technical assistance to States, educational institutions, professional 
associations and other Federal agencies relative to health personnel 
analytical information and analysis; and (8) develops and coordinates 
the Bureau data collection and modeling in conjunction with other 
entities involved in data collection and

[[Page 12743]]

analysis, such as the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality 
(AHRQ), the National Center for Health Statistics (NCHS), the Centers 
for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS), and the Administration on 
Aging (AOA).

Division of Nursing (RPB)

    Serves as the principal focus for nursing education and practice. 
Specifically: (1) Provides national leadership and professional nursing 
expertise in the areas of policy development, budget, planning, 
coordination, evaluation and utilization of nursing personnel 
resources; (2) serves, on behalf of the Secretary, as the Chair of the 
National Advisory Council on Nurse Education and Practice; (3) supports 
and conducts programs which address the development, supply, 
utilization, and quality of nursing personnel; (4) promotes the 
involvement of States and communities in developing and administering 
nursing programs and assists States and communities in improving 
nursing services and educational programs; (5) encourages coordination 
of nursing-related issues within and across Departmental entities; (6) 
facilitates coordination of nursing-related issues with other 
governmental agencies and consults with them on national or 
international nursing workforce planning and development issues; (7) 
maintains liaison with external health professional groups, the 
academic community, consumers, and State and community groups with a 
common interest in the Nation's capacity to deliver nursing services; 
(8) advances and promotes the development of effective models of 
nursing practice and education; (9) stimulates initiatives in the area 
of international nursing information exchange and nursing workforce 
planning and development; and (10) provides overall direction and 
management to the Division for both human and financial resources.

Division of Medicine and Dentistry (RPC)

    Serves as the principal focus with regard to education, practice, 
and research of health personnel, with special emphasis on allopathic 
and osteopathic physicians, podiatrists, dentists, physician assistants 
and clinical psychologists. Specifically: (1) Provides professional 
expertise in the direction and leadership required by the Bureau for 
planning, coordinating, evaluating, and supporting development and 
utilization of the Nation's health personnel for these professions; (2) 
supports and conducts programs with respect to the need for and the 
development, use, credentialing, and distribution of such personnel; 
(3) engages with other Bureau programs in cooperative efforts of 
research, development, and demonstration on the interrelationships 
between the members of the health care team, their tasks, education 
requirements, training modalities, credentialing and practice; (4) 
conducts and supports studies and evaluations of physician, dentist, 
physician assistant, podiatrist and clinical psychologist personnel 
requirements, distribution and availability, and cooperates with other 
components of the Bureau and Agency in such studies; (5) analyzes and 
interprets physician, dental, physician assistant, podiatrist and 
clinical psychologist programmatic data collected from a variety of 
sources; (6) conducts, supports, or obtains analytical studies to 
determine the present and future supply and requirements of physicians, 
dentists, physician assistants, podiatrists and clinical psychologists 
by specialty and geographic location, including the linkages between 
their training and practice characteristics; (7) conducts and supports 
studies to determine potential national goals for the training and 
distribution of physicians in graduate medical education programs and 
develops alternative strategies to accomplish these goals; (8) supports 
and conducts programs with respect to activities associated with the 
international migration, domestic training, and utilization of foreign 
medical graduates and U.S. citizens studying abroad; (9) maintains 
liaison with relevant health professional groups and others, including 
consumers, having common interest in the Nation's capacity to deliver 
health services; (10) provides consultation and technical assistance to 
public and private organizations, agencies, and institutions, including 
Regional Offices, other agencies of the Federal Government, and 
international agencies and foreign governments on all aspects of the 
Division's functions; (11) provides administrative and staff support 
for the Advisory Committee on Training and Primary Care Medicine and 
Dentistry and for the Council on Graduate Medical Education; (12) 
represents the Bureau, Agency and Federal Government, as designated, on 
national committees and/or the Accreditation Council for Graduate 
Medical Education (ACGME) and the Accreditation Council for Continuing 
Medical Education (ACCME); (13) administers support programs for the 
development, improvement, and the operation of general, pediatric, and 
public health dental educational programs; (14) designs, administers 
and supports activities relating to dentists; (15) provides technical 
assistance and consultation to grantee institutions and other 
governmental and private organizations on the operation of these 
educational programs; (16) promotes the dissemination and application 
of findings arising from programs supported; (17) develops 
congressional and other mandated or special program-specific reports 
and publications on dental educational processes, programs and 
approaches; and (18) promotes, plans, and develops collaborative 
educational activities in clinical psychology.

Division of Student Loans and Scholarships (RPD)

    Serves as the focal point for overseeing loan and scholarship 
programs supporting health professionals. Specifically: (1) Directs and 
administers the Health Professions and Nursing Student Loan and 
Scholarship Programs, the Federal Assistance to Disadvantaged Health 
Professions Scholarship Program, the Health Educational Assistance Loan 
Program, the Primary Care Loan Program, and the Nurse Faculty Loan 
Program; (2) monitors and assesses educational and financial 
institutions with respect to capabilities and management of Federal 
support for students and of tracking of obligatory service 
requirements; (3) develops and conducts training activities for staff 
of educational and financial institutions; (4) maintains liaison with 
and provides assistance to program-related public and private 
professional organizations and institutions; (5) maintains liaison with 
the Office of the General Counsel, and the Office of the Inspector 
General, DHHS, components of the Department of Education and the 
Department of Defense, and State agencies concerning student 
assistance; (6) coordinates financial aspects of programs with 
educational institutions; and (7) develops program data needs, formats, 
and reporting requirements, including collection, collation, analysis 
and dissemination of data.

Division of Diversity and Interdisciplinary Education (RPF)

    Serves as the principal focal point for interdisciplinary health 
professions issues and programs, including geriatric training, and for 
activities to increase the diversity of the health professional 
workforce. Specifically: (1) Provides leadership and direction for the

[[Page 12744]]

development and implementation of Bureau objectives as they relate to 
diverse and disadvantaged populations; (2) develops and recommends 
health resources and health career opportunities for diverse and 
disadvantaged populations; (3) initiates, stimulates, supports, 
coordinates, and evaluates Bureau programs for improving the 
availability and accessibility of health careers for diverse and 
disadvantaged populations; (4) conducts special studies and collects 
baseline data to identify specific factors contributing to the health 
and health-related problems of diverse and disadvantaged populations, 
and to develop strategies for improving health services and career 
opportunities for diverse and disadvantaged populations; (5) conducts 
extramural programs, including the use of grants and contracts, 
specifically designed to promote equity in access to health careers; 
(6) promotes, designs, supports and administers activities relating to 
the planning and development of nationally integrated health 
professions education programs; (7) promotes, plans and develops 
collaborative, interdisciplinary activities in the specialty areas of 
behavioral/mental health, rural health, geriatrics and the associated 
health professions, and other new and developing health disciplines; 
(8) promotes quality improvement in health professions education 
through collaboration and partnerships with national and international 
institutes and centers for quality improvement; (9) promotes and 
supports academic-community partnerships whose goal is the development 
of interdisciplinary, community-based programs designed to improve 
access to health care through improving the quality of health 
professions education and training; (10) serves as the Federal focus 
for the development and improvement of education for professional 
public health, preventive medicine, environmental health, and health 
administration practice, including undergraduate, graduate, and 
continuing professional development; and (11) provides administrative 
and staff support for the Advisory Committee on Interdisciplinary, 
Community-Based Linkages.

Division of Practitioner Data Banks (RPG)

    Coordinates with the Department and other Federal entities, State 
licensing boards, and national, State and local professional 
organizations to promote quality assurance efforts and deter fraud and 
abuse by administering the National Practitioner Data Bank (NPDB) as 
authorized under Title IV of the Health Care Quality Improvement Act of 
1986 and Section 5 of the Medicare and Medicaid Patient and Program 
Protection Act of 1987, and administering the Healthcare Integrity and 
Protection Data Bank (HIPDB) for the Office of Inspector General. 
Specifically: (1) Maintains active consultative relations with 
professional organizations, societies, and Federal agencies involved in 
the NPDB and HIPDB; (2) develops, proposes and monitors efforts for (a) 
credentials assessment, granting of privileges, and monitoring and 
evaluating programs for physicians, dentists, and other health care 
professionals including quality assurance, (b) professional review of 
specified medical events in the health care system including quality 
assurance, and (c) risk management and utilization reviews; (3) 
encourages and supports evaluation and demonstration projects and 
research concerning quality assurance, medical liability and 
malpractice; (4) conducts and supports research based on NPDB and HIPDB 
information; (5) works with the Secretary's office to provide technical 
assistance to States undertaking malpractice reform; and (6) maintains 
liaison with the Office of the General Counsel and the Office of 
Inspector General, HHS concerning practitioner licensing and data bank 
issues.

Section RC-30, Delegations of Authority

    All delegations of authority and re-delegations of authority made 
to HRSA officials that were in effect immediately prior to this 
reorganization, and that are consistent with this reorganization, shall 
continue in effect pending further re-delegation.
    This reorganization is effective upon the date of signature.

    Dated: February 19, 2008.
Elizabeth M. Duke,
Administrator.
 [FR Doc. E8-4601 Filed 3-7-08; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4165-15-P