[Federal Register Volume 77, Number 142 (Tuesday, July 24, 2012)]
[Notices]
[Pages 43285-43286]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2012-17982]


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DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention

[60Day-12-12PK]


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 projects or to obtain a 
copy of the data collection plans and instruments, call 404-639-7570 
and send comments to Kimberly S. Lane, 1600 Clifton Road, MS-D74, 
Atlanta, GA 30333 or send an email 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

    Using the Standardized National Hypothesis Generating Questionnaire 
during Multistate Investigations of Foodborne Disease Clusters and 
Outbreaks--New--National Center for Emerging and Zoonotic Infectious 
Diseases (NCEZID), Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).

Background and Brief Description

    Each year, it is estimated that roughly 1 in 6 Americans become ill 
with a foodborne disease. Unfortunately, of these Americans, 
approximately 128,000 are hospitalized and 3,000 die as a result of 
foodborne diseases. CDC and partners ensure rapid and coordinated 
surveillance, detection, and response to multistate foodborne disease 
outbreaks to limit the number of illnesses and to learn how to prevent 
similar outbreaks from happening in the future.
    Conducting interviews during the initial hypothesis-generating 
phase of multistate foodborne disease outbreaks presents numerous 
challenges. In the U.S., there is not a standard, national form or data 
collection system for illnesses caused by many enteric pathogens. Data 
elements for hypothesis generation must be developed and agreed upon 
for each investigation. This process can take several days to weeks, 
and may cause interviews to occur long after a person's illness.
    CDC requests OMB approval to collect standardized information from 
individuals who have become ill during a multistate foodborne disease 
event. The questionnaire is designed to be administered by public 
health officials as part of multistate hypothesis-generating interview 
activities and is not expected to entail significant burden to 
respondents.
    The Standardized National Hypothesis-Generating Core Elements 
Project was established with the goal to define a core set of data 
elements to be used for hypothesis generation during multistate 
foodborne investigations. These elements represent the minimum set of 
information that should be available for all outbreak-associated cases 
identified during hypothesis generation. The Standardized National 
Hypothesis Generating Questionnaire (SNHGQ) is a data collection tool 
for the core elements.
    The core elements and use of the SNHGQ would ensure that exposures 
of importance for investigating multistate outbreaks of various enteric 
disease pathogens would be ascertained similarly across many 
jurisdictions. This will allow for rapid pooling of data

[[Page 43286]]

to improve the timeliness of hypothesis-generating analyses and 
reducing the time it takes to pinpoint how and where contamination 
events occur.
    Both the content of the questionnaire (the core elements) and the 
format were developed through a series of working groups comprised of 
local, state, and federal public health partners. The questionnaire is 
designed to be administered over the phone by public health officials 
to collect core elements data from case-patients or their proxies. It 
is designed to be used when a multistate cluster of enteric disease 
infections is identified. Data collected during a multistate 
investigation of an enteric disease cluster will be pooled and analyzed 
at the CDC in order to develop hypotheses about potential sources of 
infection.
    The total estimated annualized burden for the Standardized National 
Generating Questionnaire is 3,000 hours (approximately 4,000 
individuals identified during the hypothesis-generating phase of 
outbreak investigations x 45 minutes/response). There are no costs to 
respondents other than their time.

                                                            Estimated Annualized Burden Hours
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                                                                                                             Number of    Average burden
              Type of respondents                               Form name                    Number of     responses per   per response    Total burden
                                                                                            respondents     respondent      (in hours)      (in hours)
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Individuals....................................  Standardized National Hypothesis                  4,000               1           45/60           3,000
                                                  Generating Questionnaire (Core
                                                  Elements).
                                                --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
    Total......................................  .......................................  ..............  ..............  ..............           3,000
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Kimberly S. Lane,
Deputy Director, Office of Science Integrity, Office of the Associate 
Director for Science, Office of the Director, Centers for Disease 
Control and Prevention.
[FR Doc. 2012-17982 Filed 7-23-12; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4163-18-P