[Federal Register Volume 75, Number 226 (Wednesday, November 24, 2010)]
[Notices]
[Pages 71708-71710]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2010-29581]


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DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention

[60 Day-11-11AT]


Proposed Data Collections Submitted for Public Comment and 
Recommendations

    In compliance with the requirement of section 3506(c)(2)(A) of the 
Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 for opportunity for public comment on 
proposed data collection projects, the Centers for Disease Control and 
Prevention (CDC) will publish periodic summaries of proposed projects. 
To request more information on the proposed project or to obtain a copy 
of the data collection plans and instruments, call the CDC Reports 
Clearance Officer at 404-639-5960 or send comments to CDC Assistant 
Reports Clearance Officer, 1600 Clifton Road, MS D-74, Atlanta, GA 
30333 or send an e-mail to [email protected].
    Comments are invited on: (a) Whether the proposed collection of 
information is necessary for the proper performance of the functions of 
the agency, including whether the information shall have practical 
utility; (b) the accuracy of the agency's estimate of the burden 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 burden of the collection of information on respondents, 
including through the use of automated collection techniques or other 
forms of information technology. Written comments should be received 
within 60 days of this notice.

Proposed Project

    The National Hospital Care Survey (NHCS)--New--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 the 
extent and nature of illness and disability of the population of the 
United States. This three-year clearance request includes data 
collection from hospital inpatient departments; hospital ambulatory 
departments including emergency departments (ED), outpatient 
departments (OPD), and ambulatory surgery centers (ASC); and 
freestanding ASCs of the new National Hospital Care Survey.
    The National Center for Health Statistics' (NCHS) surveys on 
hospital care include the National Hospital Discharge Survey (NHDS) 
(OMB No.0920-0212) and the National Hospital Ambulatory Medical Care 
Survey (NHAMCS) (OMB No. 0920-0234). NHDS has, since 1965, provided 
critical information on the utilization of the nation's non-Federal 
short-stay hospitals and on the nature and treatment of illness among 
the inpatient hospitalized population. NHAMCS has provided data 
annually since 1992 concerning the nation's use of hospital emergency 
and outpatient departments, and since 2009 and 2010, on hospital based 
and free-standing ambulatory surgery centers, respectively. These data 
have been extensively used for monitoring changes and analyzing the 
types of care provided in the nation's hospitals. NCHS is planning to 
integrate

[[Page 71709]]

the data collected from these two hospital surveys and freestanding 
ASCs into one survey, called the National Hospital Care Survey (NHCS). 
This integration will increase the wealth and depth of data on health 
care utilization and allow for linkages to other data sources such as 
the National Death Index and data from Centers for Medicare and 
Medicaid Services (CMS).
    A new sample of 500 hospitals drawn for the NHCS will be recruited. 
Annual data collection will begin by collecting the electronic Uniform 
Bills (UB-04s) on inpatients, along with facility level data, from 
recruited hospitals for the year 2011 onward. A pretest of a survey 
supplement on acute coronary syndrome sponsored by the National Heart, 
Lung, and Blood Institute will also be fielded in 2011. Then, starting 
in 2013, the sampled hospitals will be asked to provide data on the 
utilization of health care provided in their emergency and outpatient 
departments (ED and OPD) and ambulatory surgery centers (ASCs), thus 
integrating the NHDS and NHAMCS into NHCS. A new sample for 
freestanding ASCs will also be recruited in 2013. NHCS will replace 
NHDS and NHAMCS but continue to provide nationally representative data 
on utilization of hospital care and general purpose health-care 
statistics on inpatient care as well as care delivered in EDs, OPDs, 
and ASCs.
    Patient level, discharge/visit level, and facility level data items 
will be collected from the recruited hospitals and freestanding ASCs in 
the NHCS. Patient level data items will include basic demographic 
information, personal identifiers, name, address, social security 
number (if available), and medical record number (if available). 
Discharge/visit level data will include admission and discharge dates, 
reason(s) for visit, diagnoses, diagnostic services, surgical and non-
surgical procedures, medications, and disposition. Facility level data 
items will include demographic information, clinical capabilities, and 
financial information.
    The pretest of the supplement on acute coronary syndrome will be 
conducted in a convenience sample of 32 hospitals and discharges will 
be identified from the UB-04 codes for a diagnosis of acute myocardial 
infarction.
    Users of the former NHDS and NHAMCS data include, but are not 
limited to CDC, Congressional Research Office, Office of the Assistant 
Secretary for Planning and Evaluation (ASPE), American Health Care 
Association, Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS), Bureau of 
the Census, state and local governments, and nonprofit organizations. 
Data collected through NHDS and NHAMCS are essential for evaluating 
health status of the population, for the planning of programs and 
policy to elevate the health status of the Nation, for studying 
morbidity trends, and for research activities in the health field. NHDS 
and NHAMCS data have been used extensively in the development and 
monitoring of goals for the Year 2000 and 2010 Healthy People 
Objectives. Other users of these data include universities, research 
organizations, many in the private sector, foundations, and a variety 
of users in the print media. There is no cost to respondents other than 
their time to participate.

                                                            Estimated Annualized Burden Hours
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                                                                                             Number of       Number of      Avg. burden
                  Respondents                                      Form                     responding     responses per   per response    Total burden
                                                                                             hospitals      respondent      (in hours)         hours
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                                      HOSPITAL INPATIENT COMPONENT
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Hospital CEO/CFO...............................  Survey presentation to hospital........             167               1               1             167
Director of health information management        Induction (including initial facility               167               1               4             668
 (DHIM) or health information technology (DHIT).  questionnaire).
DHIM or DHIT...................................  Post induction annual facility                      333               1               2             666
                                                  questionnaire.
DHIM or DHIT...................................  Prepare and transmit UB-04 (2011-2013).             500               4               1           2,000
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                                                          AMBULATORY COMPONENT
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Ancillary Service Executive....................  Freestanding ASC Induction.............              67               1             1.5             101
Ancillary Service Executive....................  Ambulatory Unit Induction..............             613               1               1             613
Physician/Registered Nurse/Medical Record Clerk  ED Patient Record form.................              78             100            7/60             910
Physician/Registered Nurse/Medical Record Clerk  OPD Patient Record form................              44             200            9/60           1,320
Physician/Registered Nurse/Medical Record Clerk  ASC Patient Record Form................              79             100            6/60             790
Medical Record Clerk...........................  Pulling and re-filing Patient Records               151             133            1/60             335
                                                  (ED, OPD, and ASC).
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                                                     ACUTE CORONARY SYNDROME PRETEST
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Hospital CEO/CFO...............................  Presentation at hospital...............              11               1               1              11
DHIM or DHIT...................................  Pulling medical records for abstraction              11               3           15/60               8
                                                --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
    Total......................................  .......................................  ..............  ..............  ..............           7,589
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[[Page 71710]]

    Dated: November 18, 2010.
Carol E. Walker,
Acting Reports Clearance Officer, Centers for Disease Control and 
Prevention.
[FR Doc. 2010-29581 Filed 11-23-10; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4163-18-P