[Federal Register Volume 74, Number 229 (Tuesday, December 1, 2009)]
[Notices]
[Page 62828]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E9-28629]



[[Page 62828]]

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DEPARTMENT OF LABOR

Office of the Secretary


Submission for OMB Review: Comment Request

November 24, 2009.
    The Department of Labor (DOL) hereby announces the submission of 
the following public information collection requests (ICR) to the 
Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for review and approval in 
accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (Pub. L. 104-13, 44 
U.S.C. chapter 35). A copy of each ICR, with applicable supporting 
documentation; including among other things a description of the likely 
respondents, proposed frequency of response, and estimated total burden 
may be obtained from the RegInfo.gov Web site at http://www.reginfo.gov/public/do/PRAMain or by contacting Darrin King on 202-
693-4129 (this is not a toll-free number)/e-mail: [email protected].
    Interested parties are encouraged to send comments to the Office of 
Information and Regulatory Affairs, Attn: OMB Desk Officer for the 
Department of Labor--Employee Benefits Security Administration (EBSA), 
Office of Management and Budget, Room 10235, Washington, DC 20503, 
Telephone: 202-395-7316/Fax: 202-395-5806 (these are not toll-free 
numbers), E-mail: [email protected] within 30 days from the 
date of this publication in the Federal Register. In order to ensure 
the appropriate consideration, comments should reference the OMB 
Control Number (see below).
    The OMB is particularly interested in comments which:
     Evaluate whether the proposed collection of information is 
necessary for the proper performance of the functions of the agency, 
including whether the information will have practical utility;
     Evaluate 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;
     Enhance the quality, utility, and clarity of the 
information to be collected; and
     Minimize the burden of the collection of information on 
those who are to respond, including through the use of appropriate 
automated, electronic, mechanical, or other technological collection 
techniques or other forms of information technology, e.g., permitting 
electronic submission of responses.
    Agency: Employee Benefits Security Administration.
    Type of Review: Extension without change of a currently approved 
collection.
    Title of Collection: Notice of Special Enrollment Rights under 
Group Health Plans.
    OMB Control Number: 1210-0101.
    Affected Public: Private sector.
    Estimated Number of Respondents: 2,757,800.
    Total Estimated Annual Burden Hours: 0.
    Total Estimated Annual Costs Burden (excludes hourly wage costs): 
$94,917.
    Description: Under 29 CFR 2590.701-6(c), a group health plan must 
provide an individual who is offered coverage under the plan a notice 
describing the plan's special enrollment rights at or before the time 
coverage is offered. The Departments of Labor and Health and Human 
Services believe that the special enrollment notice is necessary to 
ensure that employees understand their enrollment options and will be 
able to exercise their rights during any 30-day enrollment period 
following a special enrollment event. The final regulations provide 
detailed sample language describing special enrollment rights for use 
in the notice. The sample language is expected to reduce costs for 
group health plans since it eliminates the need for plans to develop 
their own language. For additional information, see related notice 
published in the Federal Register on September 25, 2009 (Vol. 74, page 
49021).

    Agency: Employee Benefits Security Administration.
    Type of Review: Extension without change of a currently approved 
collection.
    Title of Collection: Notice of Pre-Existing Condition Exclusion 
Under Group Health Plans.
    OMB Control Number: 1210-0102.
    Affected Public: Private sector.
    Estimated Number of Respondents: 827,330.
    Total Estimated Annual Burden Hours: 6,661.
    Total Estimated Annual Costs Burden (excludes hourly wage costs): 
$1,319,664.
    Description: Plans and issuers that impose preexisting condition 
exclusion periods must give employees eligible for coverage, as part of 
any enrollment application, a general notice that describes the plan's 
preexisting condition exclusion, including that the plan will reduce 
the maximum exclusion period by the length of an employee's prior 
creditable coverage. If there are no such enrollment materials, the 
notice must be provided as soon after a request for enrollment as is 
reasonably possible. The final regulation includes sample language for 
the general notice. See 29 CFR 2590.701-3(c).
    Plans that use the alternative method of crediting coverage 
provided in the regulations must disclose their use of that method at 
the time of enrollment and describe how it operates. They must also 
explain that a participant has a right to establish prior creditable 
coverage through a certificate or other means and to request a 
certificate of prior coverage from a prior plan or issuer. Finally, 
plans or issuers must offer to assist the participant in obtaining a 
certificate from prior plans or issuers, if necessary. See 29 CFR 
2590.701-4(c)(4). For additional information, see related notice 
published in the Federal Register on September 25, 2009 (Vol. 74, page 
49024).

    Agency: Employee Benefits Security Administration.
    Type of Review: Extension without change of a currently approved 
collection.
    Title of Collection: Establishing Creditable Coverage under Group 
Health Plans.
    OMB Control Number: 1210-0103.
    Affected Public: Private sector.
    Estimated Number of Respondents: 2,757,768.
    Total Estimated Annual Burden Hours: 88,066.
    Total Estimated Annual Costs Burden (excludes hourly wage costs): 
$13,830,615.
    Description: This ICR covers an information collection requirement 
imposed under the regulations in connection with the alternative method 
of crediting coverage established by the regulations. The regulations 
permit a plan to adopt, as its method of crediting prior health 
coverage, provisions that impose different preexisting condition 
exclusion periods with respect to different categories of benefits, 
depending on prior coverage in that category. In such a case, the 
regulations require former plans to provide additional information upon 
request to new plans in order to establish an individual's length of 
prior creditable coverage within that category of benefits. For 
additional information, see related notice published in the Federal 
Register on September 25, 2009 (Vol. 74, page 49024).

Darrin A. King,
Departmental Clearance Officer.
[FR Doc. E9-28629 Filed 11-30-09; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4510-29-P