[Federal Register Volume 75, Number 19 (Friday, January 29, 2010)]
[Notices]
[Pages 4824-4825]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2010-1937]


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DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention

[30Day-10-0234]


Agency Forms Undergoing Paperwork Reduction Act Review

    The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) publishes a 
list of information collection requests under review by the Office of 
Management and Budget (OMB) in compliance with the Paperwork Reduction 
Act (44 U.S.C. Chapter 35). To request a copy of these requests, call 
the CDC Reports Clearance Officer at (404) 639-5960 or send an e-mail 
to [email protected]. Send written comments to CDC Desk Officer, Office of 
Management and Budget, Washington, DC 20503 or by fax to (202) 395-
5806. Written comments should be received within 30 days of this 
notice.

[[Page 4825]]

Proposed Project

    National Ambulatory Medical Care Survey (NAMCS) (OMB No. 0920-0234) 
-- Revision -- National Center for Health Statistics (NCHS), Centers 
for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).

Background and Brief Description

    Section 306 of the Public Health Service (PHS) Act (42 U.S.C. 
242k), as amended, authorizes that the Secretary of Health and Human 
Services (DHHS), acting through NCHS, shall collect statistics on 
``utilization of health care'' in the United States. NAMCS was 
conducted annually from 1973 to 1981, again in 1985, and resumed as an 
annual survey in 1989. The purpose of NAMCS is to meet the needs and 
demands for statistical information about the provision of ambulatory 
medical care services in the United States. NCHS is seeking OMB 
approval to extend this survey for three years. The major reason for 
this revision request is to add the collection of state level data on 
physician use of electronic medical records (EMRs), described in more 
detail below.
    Ambulatory services are rendered in a wide variety of settings, 
including physician offices and hospital outpatient and emergency 
departments. The NAMCS target universe consists of all office visits 
made by ambulatory patients to non-Federal office-based physicians 
(excluding those in the specialties of anesthesiology, radiology, and 
pathology) who are engaged in direct patient care.
    In 2006, physicians and mid-level providers (i.e., nurse 
practitioners, physician assistants, and nurse midwives) practicing in 
community health centers (CHCs) were added to the NAMCS sample, and 
these data will continue to be collected. To complement NAMCS data, 
NCHS initiated the National Hospital Ambulatory Medical Care Survey 
(NHAMCS, OMB No. 0920-0278) in 1992 to provide data concerning patient 
visits to hospital outpatient and emergency departments. NAMCS and 
NHAMCS are the principal sources of data on ambulatory care provided in 
the United States.
    NAMCS provides a range of baseline data on the characteristics of 
the users and providers of ambulatory medical care. Data collected 
include the patients' demographic characteristics, reason(s) for visit, 
provider diagnoses, diagnostic services, medications, and visit 
disposition. In addition, information on cervical cancer screening 
practices in physician offices will continue to be collected through 
the Cervical Cancer Screening Supplement (CCSS), which was added in 
2006. It will allow CDC's National Center for Chronic Disease 
Prevention and Health Promotion (NCCDPHP) to evaluate cervical cancer 
screening methods and the use of Human Papillomavirus DNA tests.
    A supplemental mail survey on the adoption and use of EMR in 
physician offices was added to NAMCS in 2008, and will continue. These 
data were requested by the Office of the National Coordinator for 
Health Information Technology (ONC), Department of Health and Human 
Services, to measure progress toward goals for EMR adoption. The mail 
survey will collect information on characteristics of physician 
practices and the capabilities of EMRs used in those practices. 
Starting in 2010, the EMR mail survey will have a five-fold increase 
from the 2009 sample to collect state-level data.
    Users of NAMCS data include, but are not limited to, Congressional 
offices, Federal agencies, state and local governments, schools of 
public health, colleges and universities, private industry, nonprofit 
foundations, professional associations, clinicians, researchers, 
administrators, and health planners.
    There is no cost to respondents other than their time to 
participate. The total estimated annualized burden hours are 7,372.

                                        Estimated Annualized Burden Table
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                                                                                     Number of
          Type of respondent                    Form name            Number of     responses per     Hours per
                                                                    respondents     respondent       response
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Core NAMCS
    Office-based physicians/CHC         Physician Induction                3,657               1           28/60
     providers.                          Interview (NAMCS-1).
    Community Health Center Directors.  Community Health Center              104               1           20/60
                                         Induction Interview
                                         (NAMCS-201).
    Office-based physicians/CHC         Patient Record form                  738              30            9/60
     providers/staff.                    (NAMCS-30).
    Office/CHC staff..................  Pulling, re-filing                   650              30            1/60
                                         Patient Record form
                                         (NAMCS-30).
    Office-based physicians/CHC         Cervical Cancer                      464               1           15/60
     providers/staff.                    Screening Supplement
                                         (NAMCS-CCS).
    Office-based physicians...........  EMR/EHR Mail Survey.....           5,604               1           20/60
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    Dated: January 25, 2010.
Maryam I. Daneshvar,
Acting Reports Clearance Officer, Centers for Disease Control and 
Prevention.
[FR Doc. 2010-1937 Filed 1-28-10; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4163-18-P