[Federal Register Volume 84, Number 153 (Thursday, August 8, 2019)]
[Notices]
[Pages 38984-38986]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2019-17001]


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DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES

Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality


Agency Information Collection Activities: Proposed Collection; 
Comment Request

AGENCY: Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality, HHS.

ACTION: Notice.

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SUMMARY: This notice announces the intention of the Agency for 
Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ) to request that the Office of 
Management and Budget (OMB) reapprove the proposed information 
collection project: ``Medical Expenditure Panel Survey--Insurance 
Component.''

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DATES: Comments on this notice must be received by 60 days after date 
of publication.

ADDRESSES: Written comments should be submitted to: Doris Lefkowitz, 
Reports Clearance Officer, AHRQ, by email at 
[email protected].
    Copies of the proposed collection plans, data collection 
instruments, and specific details on the estimated burden can be 
obtained from the AHRQ Reports Clearance Officer.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Doris Lefkowitz, AHRQ Reports 
Clearance Officer, (301) 427-1477, or by email at 
[email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

Proposed Project

Medical Expenditure Panel Survey--Insurance Component

    Employer-sponsored health insurance is the source of coverage for 
84.4 million current and former workers, plus many of their family 
members, and is a cornerstone of the U.S. health care system. The 
Medical Expenditure Panel Survey--Insurance Component (MEPS-IC) 
measures the extent, cost, and coverage of employer-sponsored health 
insurance on an annual basis. These statistics are produced at the 
National, State, and sub-State (metropolitan area) level for private 
industry. Statistics are also produced for State and Local governments.
    This research has the following goals:
    (1) To provide data for Federal policymakers evaluating the effects 
of National and State health care reforms.
    (2) to provide descriptive data on the current employer-sponsored 
health insurance system and data for modeling the differential impacts 
of proposed health policy initiatives.
    (3) to supply critical State and National estimates of health 
insurance spending for the National Health Accounts and Gross Domestic 
Product.
    This study is being conducted by AHRQ through the Bureau of the 
Census, pursuant to AHRQ's statutory authority to conduct and support 
research on healthcare and on systems for the delivery of such care, 
including activities with respect to the cost and use of health care 
services and with respect to health statistics and surveys. 42 U.S.C. 
299a(a)(3) and (8); 42 U.S.C. 299b-2.

Method of Collection

    To achieve the goals of this project the following data collections 
for both private sector and state and local government employers will 
be implemented:
    (1) Prescreener Questionnaire--The purpose of the Prescreener 
Questionnaire, which is collected via telephone, varies depending on 
the insurance status of the establishment contacted (establishment is 
defined as a single, physical location in the private sector and a 
governmental unit in state and local governments). For establishments 
that do not offer health insurance to their employees, the prescreener 
is used to collect basic information such as number of employees. 
Collection is completed for these establishments through this telephone 
call. For establishments that do offer health insurance, contact name 
and address information is collected that is used for the mailout of 
the establishment and plan questionnaires. Obtaining this contact 
information helps ensure that the questionnaires are directed to the 
person in the establishment best equipped to complete them.
    (2) Establishment Questionnaire--The purpose of the mailed 
Establishment Questionnaire is to obtain general information from 
employers that provide health insurance to their employees. Information 
such as total active enrollment in health insurance, other employee 
benefits, demographic characteristics of employees, and retiree health 
insurance is collected through the establishment questionnaire.
    (3) Plan Questionnaire--The purpose of the mailed Plan 
Questionnaire is to collect plan-specific information on each plan (up 
to four plans) offered by establishments that provide health insurance 
to their employees. This questionnaire obtains information on total 
premiums, employer and employee contributions to the premium, and plan 
enrollment for each type of coverage offered--single, employee-plus-
one, and family--within a plan. It also asks for information on 
deductibles, copays, and other plan characteristics.
    The primary objective of the MEPS-IC is to collect information on 
employer-sponsored health insurance. Such information is needed in 
order to provide the tools for Federal, State, and academic researchers 
to evaluate current and proposed health policies and to support the 
production of important statistical measures for other Federal 
agencies.

Estimated Annual Respondent Burden

    Exhibit 1 shows the estimated annualized burden hours for the 
respondents' time to participate in the MEPS-IC. The Prescreener 
questionnaire will be completed by 29,931 respondents and takes about 5 
minutes to complete. The Establishment questionnaire will be completed 
by 25,819 respondents and takes about 23 minutes to complete. The Plan 
questionnaire will be completed by 22,859 respondents and will require 
an average of 2.2 responses per respondent. Each Plan questionnaire 
takes about 11 minutes to complete. The total annualized burden hours 
are estimated to be 21,611 hours.
    Exhibit 2 shows the estimated annualized cost burden associated 
with the respondents' time to participate in this data collection. The 
annualized cost burden is estimated to be $705,599.

                     Exhibit 1--Estimated Annualized Burden Hours for the 2020-2021 MEPS-IC
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                                                     Number of
                    Form name                        Number of     responses per     Hours per     Total burden
                                                    respondents     respondent       response          hours
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Prescreener Questionnaire.......................          29,931               1            5/60           2,494
Establishment Questionnaire.....................          25,819               1         * 23/60           9,897
Plan Questionnaire..............................          22,859             2.2           11/60           9,220
                                                 ---------------------------------------------------------------
    Total.......................................          78,609              na              na          21,611
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* The burden estimate printed on the establishment questionnaire is 45 minutes which includes the burden
  estimate for completing the establishment questionnaire and two plan questionnaires (on average, each
  establishment completes 2.2 plan questionnaires), plus the prescreener. The establishment and plan
  questionnaires are sent to the respondent as a package and are completed by the respondent at the same time.


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                      Exhibit 2--Estimated Annualized Cost Burden for the 2020-2021 MEPS-IC
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                                                     Number of     Total burden   Average hourly    Total cost
                    Form name                       respondents        hours        wage rate *       burden
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Prescreener Questionnaire.......................          29,931           2,494          $32.65         $81,429
Establishment Questionnaire.....................          25,819           9,897           32.65         323,137
Plan Questionnaire..............................          22,859           9,220           32.65         301,033
                                                 ---------------------------------------------------------------
    Total.......................................          78,609          21,611              na         705,599
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* Based upon the mean hourly wage for Compensation, Benefits, and Job Analysis Specialists occupation code 13-
  1141, at https://www.bls.gov/oes/current/oes131141.htm (U.S. Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor
  Statistics.).

Request for Comments

    In accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act, 44 U.S.C. 3501-
3521, comments on AHRQ's information collection are requested with 
regard to any of the following: (a) Whether the proposed collection of 
information is necessary for the proper performance of AHRQ health care 
research and health care information dissemination functions, including 
whether the information will have practical utility; (b) the accuracy 
of AHRQ's estimate of burden (including hours and costs) of the 
proposed collection(s) 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 upon the 
respondents, including the use of automated collection techniques or 
other forms of information technology.
    Comments submitted in response to this notice will be summarized 
and included in the Agency's subsequent request for OMB approval of the 
proposed information collection. All comments will become a matter of 
public record.

    Dated: August 5, 2019.
Virginia L. Mackay-Smith,
Associate Director.
[FR Doc. 2019-17001 Filed 8-7-19; 8:45 am]
 BILLING CODE 4160-90-P