[Federal Register Volume 84, Number 249 (Monday, December 30, 2019)]
[Notices]
[Pages 71953-71954]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2019-28104]


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DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES

Administration for Community Living


Agency Information Collection Activities; Proposed Collection; 
Comment Request; SHIP-SMP Survey of Group Outreach and Education 
Events, Formerly the ``Senior Medicare Program National Beneficiary 
Survey'', OMB #0985-0056

AGENCY: Administration for Community Living, HHS.

ACTION: Notice.

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SUMMARY:  The Administration for Community Living (ACL) is announcing 
an opportunity for the public to comment on the proposed collection of 
information listed above. Under the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 
(the PRA), Federal agencies are required to publish a notice in the 
Federal Register concerning each proposed collection of information, 
including each proposed extension of an existing collection of 
information, and to allow 60 days for public comment in response to the 
notice.
    This notice solicits comments on the Proposed Revision and solicits 
comments on the information collection requirements related to the 
``National SHIP-SMP Beneficiary Survey of Group Outreach and Education 
Events''.

DATES:  Comments on the collection of information must be submitted 
electronically by 11:59 p.m. (EST) or postmarked by February 28, 2020.

ADDRESSES:  Submit electronic comments on the collection of information 
to: Sara Vogler. Submit written comments on the collection of 
information to Administration for Community Living, Washington, DC 
20201, Attention: Sara Vogler.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:  Sara Vogler, Administration for 
Community Living, Washington, DC 20201, 202-795-7461, 
[email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:  Under the PRA, Federal agencies must obtain 
approval from the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for each 
collection of information they conduct or sponsor. ``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.
    The PRA requires Federal agencies to provide a 60-day notice in the 
Federal Register concerning each proposed collection of information, 
including each proposed extension of an existing collection of 
information, before submitting the collection to OMB for approval. To 
comply with this requirement, ACL is publishing a notice of the 
proposed collection of information set forth in this document.
    With respect to the following collection of information, ACL 
invites comments on our burden estimates or any other aspect of this 
collection of information, including: (1) Whether the proposed 
collection of information is necessary for the proper performance of 
ACL's functions, including whether the information will have practical 
utility; (2) the accuracy of ACL's estimate of the burden of the 
proposed collection of information, including the validity of the 
methodology and assumptions used to determine burden estimates; (3) 
ways to enhance the quality, utility, and clarity of the information to 
be collected; and (4) ways to minimize the burden of the collection of 
information on respondents, including through the use of automated 
collection techniques when appropriate, and other forms of information 
technology.
    The SHIP-SMP Survey of Group Outreach and Education Events is a 
survey of individuals who attend outreach and education events provided 
by the State Health Insurance Assistance Program (SHIP) or Senior 
Medicare Patrol (SMP). These events help Medicare beneficiaries 
understand their Medicare benefits and options. These events also 
increase the ability of beneficiaries to identify fraud, waste, and 
abuse within health care programs generally, and Medicare/Medicaid 
specifically.
    The State Health Insurance Assistance Program (SHIP) was created 
under the Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act of 1990. This section of 
the law authorized the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) to 
make grants to states to establish and maintain health insurance 
advisory service programs for Medicare beneficiaries. Grant funds were 
made available to support information, counseling, and assistance 
activities related to Medicare, Medicaid, and other health insurance 
options.
    The Senior Medicare Patrol (SMP) program was authorized in 1997 
under Titles II and IV of the Older Americans Act, the Omnibus 
Consolidated Appropriation Act of 1997 and the Health Insurance 
Portability and Accountability Act of 1996. The SMP mission is to 
empower and assist Medicare beneficiaries, their families, and 
caregivers, to prevent, detect, and report suspected healthcare fraud, 
errors, and abuse through outreach, counseling, and education.
    SMP grantees support ACL's goals of promoting increased choice and 
greater independence among older adults and individuals with 
disabilities. SMP activities enhance the financial, emotional, 
physical, and mental well-being of older adults, thereby increasing 
their capacity to maintain security in retirement and make better 
financial and healthcare choices.
    SHIP-SMP grantees provide group outreach and education through 
presentation events, and this collection will survey the attendees of 
those events. The SHIP-SMP Survey of Group Outreach and Education 
Events will focus on group outreach and education events and the 
individuals who attend them, to determine if the target audience is 
satisfied with the information they are receiving. This is a renewal of 
the existing Senior Medicare Program National Beneficiary Survey, which 
received clearance on August 28, 2017, with ICR Reference Number 
201702-0985-003 and OMB Control Number 0985-0056. That survey was 
conducted over a three-year period beginning on October 1, 2017, and 
will conclude on March 30, 2020. To date, the Senior Medicare Program 
National Beneficiary Survey has generated over 5000 responses, all of 
which were submitted anonymously and voluntarily.
    ACL requests renewal of the survey to continue the collection 
performed in Fiscal Years 2018, 2019, and 2020. Reports developed for 
FY18 and FY19 participants have provided an overall measure of 
presentation attendee satisfaction and have provided insight into the 
relationship between presentation inputs (information provided, access 
to presentations) and overall satisfaction. The renewed survey will 
include both SHIP and SMP presentations and will survey every 
participating state and territory at least once each year.
    To generate a sample with a 95% confidence level at the national 
level

[[Page 71954]]

400 responses will be required, which is based on over 500,000 group 
outreach and education event attendees in 2018. ACL will draw a 
representative sample of event attendees by surveying each of the 54 
participating states and territories at least once. An average event 
surveyed in FY18 or FY19 generated 11 completed surveys, resulting in 
an estimated minimal collection of 600 responses.
    In the first three years of the existing survey states and 
territories had the opportunity to exceed the minimum requirements, in 
order to collect a larger overall dataset for their state or territory. 
This opportunity will continue with the renewed survey. Assuming that 
an average state or territory collects 100 surveys per year, the 
maximum burden estimate is 5400 responses per year.
    The proposed data collection tools may be found on the ACL website 
for review at https://www.acl.gov/about-acl/public-input.

Estimated Program Burden

    ACL estimates the burden associated with this collection of 
information as follows:

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                                                     Number of
       Respondent/data collection activity          respondents    Responses per     Hours per     Annual burden
                                                     (minimum)      respondent       response          hours
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Survey, Stratified Random Sample................             600               1            5/60              50
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    Total.......................................             600               1            5/60              50
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                                                     Number of
       Respondent/data collection activity          respondents    Responses per     Hours per     Annual burden
                                                     (maximum)      respondent       response          hours
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Survey, Stratified Random Sample................            5400               1            5/60             450
                                                 ---------------------------------------------------------------
    Total.......................................            5400               1            5/60             450
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    Dated: December 19, 2019.
Mary Lazare,
Principal Deputy Administrator.
[FR Doc. 2019-28104 Filed 12-27-19; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4154-01-P