[Federal Register Volume 84, Number 197 (Thursday, October 10, 2019)]
[Notices]
[Pages 54617-54619]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2019-22166]


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DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES

Health Resources and Services Administration


Agency Information Collection Activities: Proposed Collection: 
Public Comment Request; Information Collection Request Title: Nurse 
Corps Loan Repayment Program; Information Collection Request Title: 
Nurse Corps Loan Repayment Program, OMB No. 0915-0140--Revision

AGENCY: Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA), Department 
of Health and Human Services.

ACTION: Notice.

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SUMMARY: In compliance with the requirement for opportunity for public 
comment on proposed data collection projects of the Paperwork Reduction 
Act of 1995, HRSA announces plans to submit an Information Collection 
Request (ICR), described below, to the Office of Management and Budget 
(OMB). Prior to submitting the ICR to OMB, HRSA seeks comments from the 
public regarding the burden estimate, below, or any other aspect of the 
ICR.

DATES: Comments on this ICR should be received no later than December 
9, 2019.

ADDRESSES: Submit your comments to [email protected] or mail the HRSA 
Information Collection Clearance Officer, Room 14N136B, 5600 Fishers 
Lane, Rockville, Maryland 20857.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: To request more information on the 
proposed project or to obtain a copy of the data collection plans and 
draft instruments, email [email protected] or call Lisa Wright-
Solomon, the HRSA Information Collection Clearance Officer at (301) 
443-1984.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: When submitting comments or requesting 
information, please include the ICR title for reference.
    Information Collection Request Title: Nurse Corps Loan Repayment 
Program OMB No. 0915-0140--Revision
    Abstract: The Nurse Corps Loan Repayment Program (Nurse Corps LRP) 
assists in the recruitment and retention of professional Registered 
Nurses (RNs) by decreasing the financial barriers associated with 
pursuing a nursing education. RNs in this instance include advanced 
practice RNs (e.g., nurse practitioners, certified registered nurse 
anesthetists, certified nurse-midwives,

[[Page 54618]]

and clinical nurse specialists) dedicated to working at eligible health 
care facilities with a critical shortage of nurses (i.e., a Critical 
Shortage Facility) or working as nurse faculty in eligible, accredited 
schools of nursing. The Nurse Corps LRP provides loan repayment 
assistance to these nurses to repay a portion of their qualifying 
educational loans in exchange for full-time service at a public or 
private nonprofit Critical Shortage Facility (CSF) or in an eligible, 
accredited school of nursing.
    Need and Proposed Use of the Information: This information 
collection is used by the Nurse Corps program to make award decisions 
about Nurse Corps LRP applicants and to monitor a participant's 
compliance with the program's service requirements. Individuals must 
submit an application in order to participate in the program. The 
application asks for personal, professional, educational, and financial 
information required to determine the applicant's eligibility to 
participate in the Nurse Corps LRP.
    This revised information collection request includes a new form and 
updates to existing forms for the Nurse Corps LRP in order to expand 
the service options for awarded participants, promote the use of 
telehealth for delivering care throughout the nation especially in 
rural areas, and to reduce the application burden on respondents.
    New Form #1--Applicants will be asked to submit a Disadvantaged 
Background Form. This new form asks the applicant's site Point of 
Contact to certify whether the applicant is from a disadvantaged 
background. The form provides eligibility criteria for the 
determination.
    Updated Form #1--The Participant Semi-Annual Employment 
Verification Form will be updated to include additional information 
about the participant's service including information about telehealth 
services and whether they work at multiple CSF sites. Telehealth helps 
expand the reach of providers especially in rural areas where medical 
service sites are more remote. The information collected will assist 
Program with determining the impact and utilization of telehealth 
services in various health care settings which will be used to inform 
our telehealth policies. Enabling multiple CSF site service will also 
allow greater flexibility for providers who rotate or split time 
between multiple sites which benefits both the participants and the 
underserved communities--especially in our Federally Qualified Health 
Centers which support many of our Nurse Corps Nurse Practitioners.
    Updated Form #2--The Nurse Corps LRP application will include 
questions for applicants to provide information regarding telehealth 
services, multiple CSF sites, and verification of base salary to 
determine the debt to salary ratio used to rank applicants for award 
consideration. The application will also be updated to identify 
applicants eligible for Nurse Corps LRP psychiatric nurse practitioner 
funding.
    Likely Respondents: Professional RNs or advanced practice RNs who 
are interested in participating in the Nurse Corps LRP and official 
representatives at their service sites.
    Burden Statement: Burden in this context means the time expended by 
persons to generate, maintain, retain, disclose, or provide the 
information requested. This includes the time needed to review 
instructions; to develop, acquire, install, and utilize technology and 
systems for the purpose of collecting, validating, and verifying 
information, processing and maintaining information, and disclosing and 
providing information; to train personnel to be able to respond to a 
collection of information; to search data sources; to complete and 
review the collection of information and to transmit or otherwise 
disclose the information. The total annual burden hours estimated for 
this ICR are summarized in the table below.
    Total Estimated Annualized Burden Hours: The estimates of reporting 
burden for Applications are as follows;

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                                                     Number of                    Average burden
            Form name                Number of     responses per       Total       per response    Total burden
                                    respondents     respondent       responses      (in hours)         hours
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Nurse Corps LRP Application *...           7,100               1           7,100            2.00          14,200
Authorization to Release                   7,100               1           7,100             .10             710
 Information Form **............
Employment Verification Form **.           7,100               1           7,100             .10             710
Disadvantaged Background Form...             450               1             450             .20              90
Confirmation of Interest Form...             500               1             500             .20             100
rrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr
    Total for Applicants........          22,250  ..............          22,250  ..............          15,810
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* The burden hours associated with this instrument account for both new and continuation applications.
  Additional (uploaded) supporting documentation is included as part of this instrument are reflected in the
  burden hours.
** The same respondents are completing these instruments.

    The estimates of reporting for Participants are as follows:

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                                                     Number of                    Average burden
            Form name                Number of     responses per       Total       per response    Total burden
                                    respondents     respondent       responses      (in hours)         hours
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Participant Semi-Annual In                   500               2           1,000             .50             500
 Service Verification Form......
Nurse Corps CSF.................             500               1             500             .10              50
Verification Form...............
Nurse Corps Nurse Faculty                    450               1             450             .20              90
 Employment Verification Form...
rrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr
    Total for Participants......           1,450  ..............           1,950  ..............             640
rrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr

[[Page 54619]]

 
        Total for Applicants and          23,700  ..............          24,200  ..............        16,450 *
         Participants...........
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* The total burden hour estimate is a combination of burden hours for both applicants and participants. This
  revision adds an additional form (the Disadvantaged Background Form).

    HRSA specifically requests comments on (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.

Maria G. Button,
Director, Executive Secretariat.
[FR Doc. 2019-22166 Filed 10-9-19; 8:45 am]
 BILLING CODE 4165-15-P