[Federal Register Volume 76, Number 236 (Thursday, December 8, 2011)]
[Notices]
[Pages 76740-76741]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2011-31522]


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DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES

Health Resources and Services Administration


Secretary's Advisory Committee on Heritable Disorders in Newborns 
and Children; Notice of Meeting

    In accordance with section 10(a)(2) of the Federal Advisory 
Committee Act (Pub. L. 92-463, codified at 5 U.S.C. app. 2), notice is 
hereby given of the following meeting:

    Name: Secretary's Advisory Committee on Heritable Disorders in 
Newborns and Children.
    Dates and Times: January 26, 2012, 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. January 
27, 2012, 8:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m.
    Place: Park Hyatt Hotel, 1201 24th Street NW., Washington, DC 
20037.
    Status: The meeting will be open to the public, but attendance 
will be limited by the space available. Participants are asked to 
register for the meeting by going to the registration Web site at 
http://altarum.cvent.com/event/sachdncjan2012. The registration 
deadline is Monday, January 23, 2012. Individuals who need special 
assistance, such as sign language interpretation or other reasonable 
accommodations, should indicate their needs on the registration Web 
site. The deadline for special accommodation requests is Tuesday, 
January 24, 2012. If there are technical problems gaining access to 
the Web site, please contact Maureen Ball, Meetings Coordinator, at 
[email protected].
    Purpose: The Secretary's Advisory Committee on Heritable 
Disorders in

[[Page 76741]]

Newborns and Children (Advisory Committee), as authorized by Public 
Law 106-310, which added section 1111 of the Public Health Service 
Act, codified at 42 U.S.C. 300b-10, was established by Congress to 
advise the Secretary in connection with the development of newborn 
screening activities, technologies, policies, guidelines and 
programs for effectively reducing morbidity and mortality in 
newborns and children having or at risk for heritable disorders. 
Recommendations for screenings that are adopted by the Secretary are 
included in the Recommended Uniform Screening Panel (RUSP), which 
forms a part of the Comprehensive Guidelines supported by the Health 
Resources and Services Administration. Pursuant to section 2713 of 
the Public Health Service Act, codified at 42 U.S.C. 300gg-13, non-
grandfathered health plans are required to cover screenings provided 
for in the Comprehensive Guidelines without charging a co-payment, 
co-insurance, or deductible for plan years (in the individual market 
these are known as policy years) beginning on or after the date that 
is one year from the Secretary's adoption of a screening(s). The 
Advisory Committee also provides advice and recommendations 
concerning grants and projects authorized under section 1109 of the 
Public Health Service Act (42 U.S.C. 300b-8).
    Agenda: The meeting will include: (1) An orientation for all new 
Committee members including overviews of the Department of Health 
and Human Services, the Health Resources and Services Administration 
(HRSA), and the Maternal and Child Health Bureau; (2) the history of 
the Advisory Committee; (3) an overview of the authorizing 
legislation for the Advisory Committee; (4) updates from the 
Nomination and Prioritization workgroup, Public Health Impact Matrix 
workgroup and the Evidence Review workgroup; and (5) presentations 
on the continued work and reports of the Advisory Committee's 
subcommittees: Laboratory Standards and Procedures; Follow-up and 
Treatment; and Education and Training. Tentatively, the Advisory 
Committee is expected to review and/or vote on the following items: 
(1) Forwarding the 22q11 condition nomination package to the 
Evidence Review Workgroup for further evaluation; (2) reviewing the 
draft Public Health Impact Matrix; (3) forwarding the 
Hyperbilirubinemia condition nomination to the Public Health Impact 
Workgroup for further evaluation; (4) reviewing the report on 
Linking Birth Certificates and Serial Numbers; and (5) reviewing the 
report on Implementing Point of Care Newborn Screening.
    Proposed agenda items are subject to change as priorities 
dictate. The Agenda, Committee Roster and Charter, presentations, 
and meeting materials can be found at the home page of the Advisory 
Committee's Web site at http://www.hrsa.gov/heritabledisorderscommittee/.
    Public Comments: Members of the public can submit written 
comments and/or present oral comments during the public comment 
periods of the meeting. Time for public comments has been scheduled 
to occur during the afternoon of January 26, 2012. Those individuals 
who want to make oral comments are requested to register online by 
Monday, January 23, 2012 at http://altarum.cvent.com/event/sachdncjan2012. In order to be considered, written comments should 
be emailed no later than Tuesday, January 24, 2012. All comments, 
whether oral or written, should contain the name, address, telephone 
number, and any professional or business affiliation of the author. 
Groups having similar interests are requested to combine their 
comments and present them through a single representative. Submit 
written comments to Maureen Ball, Meetings Coordinator, Conference 
and Meetings Management, Altarum Institute, 1200 18th Street NW., 
Suite 700, Washington, DC 20036. Comments may also be faxed (202) 
785-3083 or emailed ([email protected]). If you have 
additional questions regarding the submission of comments, please 
contact Ms. Ball at (202) 828-5100.
    Contact Person: Anyone interested in obtaining other relevant 
information should contact or write to Debi Sarkar, Maternal and 
Child Health Bureau, Health Resources and Services Administration, 
Room 18A-19, Parklawn Building, 5600 Fishers Lane, Rockville, 
Maryland 20857; telephone: (301) 443-1080; email: [email protected]. 
More information on the Advisory Committee is available at http://mchb.hrsa.gov/heritabledisorderscommittee.

    Dated: December 2, 2011.
Reva Harris,
Acting Director, Division of Policy and Information Coordination.
[FR Doc. 2011-31522 Filed 12-7-11; 8:45 am]
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