[Federal Register Volume 79, Number 15 (Thursday, January 23, 2014)]
[Notices]
[Pages 3818-3819]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2014-01208]


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DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES

Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services

[Document Identifier: CMS-R-308 and CMS-10508]


Agency Information Collection Activities: Submission for OMB 
Review; Comment Request

ACTION: Notice.

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SUMMARY: The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) is 
announcing an opportunity for the public to comment on CMS' intention 
to collect information from the public. Under the Paperwork Reduction 
Act of 1995 (PRA), federal agencies are required to publish notice in 
the Federal Register concerning each proposed collection of 
information, including each proposed extension or reinstatement of an 
existing collection of information, and to allow a second opportunity 
for public comment on the notice. Interested persons are invited to 
send comments regarding the burden estimate or any other aspect of this 
collection of information, including any of the following subjects: (1) 
the necessity and utility of the proposed information collection for 
the proper performance of the agency's functions; (2) the accuracy of 
the estimated burden; (3) ways to enhance the quality, utility, and 
clarity of the information to be collected; and (4) the use of 
automated collection techniques or other forms of information 
technology to minimize the information collection burden.

DATES: Comments on the collection(s) of information must be received by 
the OMB desk officer by February 24, 2014.

ADDRESSES: When commenting on the proposed information collections, 
please reference the document identifier or OMB control number. To be 
assured consideration, comments and recommendations must be received by 
the OMB desk officer via one of the following transmissions:
    OMB, Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs, Attention: CMS 
Desk Officer, Fax Number: (202) 395-5806 OR Email: OIRA-- 
[email protected].
    To obtain copies of a supporting statement and any related forms 
for the proposed collection(s) summarized in this notice, you may make 
your request using one of following:
    1. Access CMS' Web site address at http://www.cms.hhs.gov/PaperworkReductionActof1995.
    2. Email your request, including your address, phone number, OMB 
number,

[[Page 3819]]

and CMS document identifier, to [email protected].
    3. Call the Reports Clearance Office at (410) 786-1326.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Reports Clearance Office at (410) 786-
1326

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Under the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 
(PRA) (44 U.S.C. 3501-3520), federal agencies must obtain approval from 
the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for each collection of 
information they conduct or sponsor. The term ``collection of 
information'' is defined in 44 U.S.C. 3502(3) and 5 CFR 1320.3(c) and 
includes agency requests or requirements that members of the public 
submit reports, keep records, or provide information to a third party. 
Section 3506(c)(2)(A) of the PRA (44 U.S.C. 3506(c)(2)(A)) requires 
federal agencies to publish a 30-day notice in the Federal Register 
concerning each proposed collection of information, including each 
proposed extension or reinstatement of an existing collection of 
information, before submitting the collection to OMB for approval. To 
comply with this requirement, CMS is publishing this notice that 
summarizes the following proposed collection(s) of information for 
public comment:
    1. Type of Information Collection Request: Extension of a currently 
approved collection; Title of Information Collection: State Children's 
Health Insurance Program and Supporting Regulations; Use: States must 
submit title XXI plans and amendments for approval by the Secretary. We 
use the plan and its subsequent amendments to determine if the state 
has met the requirements of title XXI. Information provided in the 
state plan, state plan amendments, and from the other information we 
are collecting will be used by advocacy groups, beneficiaries, 
applicants, other governmental agencies, providers groups, research 
organizations, health care corporations, health care consultants. 
States will use the information collected to assess state plan 
performance, health outcomes and an evaluation of the amount of 
substitution of private coverage that occurs as a result of the 
subsidies and the effect of the subsidies on access to coverage. Form 
Number: CMS-R-308 (OCN: 0938-0841); Frequency: Yearly, Once, and 
Occasionally; Affected Public: State, Local, or Tribal Governments; 
Number of Respondents: 56; Total Annual Responses: 400; Total Annual 
Hours: 1,473,817. (For policy questions regarding this collection 
contact Judith Cash at 410-786-4473).
    2. Type of Information Collection Request: New collection (Request 
for a new OMB control number); Title of Information Collection: 
Evaluation of the Rural Community Hospital Demonstration (RCHD); Use: 
Section 10313 of the Affordable Care Act of 2010 (ACA) extended and 
expanded the Rural Community Hospital Demonstration (RCHD). Originally 
authorized under the Medicare Prescription Drug, Improvement, and 
Modernization Act of 2003 (MMA), the RCHD provides enhanced 
reimbursement for inpatient services to small rural hospitals that do 
not qualify as critical access hospitals (CAHs). The RCHD is intended 
to increase the capability of these hospitals to meet the health care 
needs of rural beneficiaries in their service areas. As a 
demonstration, the RCHD aims to provide information that can be used to 
assess the feasibility and advisability of establishing a new category 
of rural community hospitals for reimbursement policy. As of January 
2013, 23 hospitals from 11 states are participating in the RCHD. This 
number includes seven hospitals continuing from the original 
demonstration as authorized under the MMA and 15 new hospitals that 
joined under the expansion authorized under the ACA.
    For the original demonstration, the MMA required a Report to 
Congress six months after the end of the demonstration, a requirement 
unchanged by the ACA. An initial evaluation was conducted between 2007 
and 2011 toward preparing for a Report to Congress and focused on the 
17 hospitals that had participated at some point between October 2004 
and March 2011. Findings from this evaluation were reported to the 
Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) in the Interim 
Evaluation Report of the Rural Community Hospital Demonstration (an 
unpublished report).
    The current five-year evaluation of the RCHD will extend and build 
on the prior evaluation and produce the Report to Congress required by 
the MMA. It will assess the impact of the RCHD in meeting its goals: to 
enable hospitals to achieve community benefits such as improved 
services for their communities (especially Medicare beneficiaries), 
meet their individual strategic goals, and improve the financial 
solvency and viability of the participating hospitals. In addition, the 
evaluation will determine if it is feasible and advisable to create a 
new payment category of rural hospitals. To achieve this objective, the 
evaluation will examine how RCHD hospitals responded to payment options 
and assess how the costs to Medicare under RCHD compare to existing 
alternative payment options.
    The evaluation will also summarize the characteristics of the 
markets served by RCHD hospitals, including beneficiaries' proximity to 
inpatient providers and competition among providers in the area. The 
information will be used to assess the implications of expanding the 
RCHD payment system to hospitals in various market environments. In 
addition, the evaluation will examine the potential costs of expanding 
the RCHD payment methodology, accounting for alternative approaches to 
targeting rural hospitals. Form Number: CMS-10508 (OCN: 0938-NEW); 
Frequency: Annually; Affected Public: State, Local or Tribal 
Governments, Private sector (Business or other for-profit and Not-for-
profit organizations); Number of Respondents: 57; Total Annual 
Responses: 101; Total Annual Hours: 245. (For policy questions 
regarding this collection contact Woolton Lee at 410-786-4942.)

    Dated: January 16, 2014.
Martique Jones,
Deputy Director, Regulations Development Group, Office of Strategic 
Operations and Regulatory Affairs.
[FR Doc. 2014-01208 Filed 1-22-14; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4120-01-P