[Federal Register Volume 85, Number 230 (Monday, November 30, 2020)]
[Notices]
[Pages 76585-76586]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2020-26254]


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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: Rural 
Health Care Coordination Program OMB No. 0906-0024--Reinstate With 
Changes

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 the 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 January 
29, 2021.

ADDRESSES: Submit your comments to [email protected] or mail the HRSA 
Information Collection Clearance Officer, Room 14N136B, 5600 Fishers 
Lane, Rockville, MD 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 information request collection title 
for reference.
    Information Collection Request Title: Rural Health Care 
Coordination Program OMB No. 0906-0024--Reinstate with Changes.
    Abstract: The Rural Health Care Coordination Program (Care 
Coordination Program) is authorized under Section 330A(e) of the Public 
Health Service Act (42 U.S.C. 254(e)), as amended, to ``improve access 
and quality of care through the application of care coordination 
strategies with the focus areas of collaboration, leadership and 
workforce, improved outcomes, and sustainability in rural 
communities.'' This authority permits HRSA's Federal Office of Rural 
Health Policy to support rural health consortiums/networks aiming to 
achieve the overall goals of improving access, delivery, and quality of 
care through the application of care coordination strategies in rural 
communities.
    This ICR was discontinued in January 2020. HRSA is requesting a 
reinstatement with changes as it was decided to re-compete this pilot 
program.
    The proposed Rural Health Care Coordination Program draft measures 
for information collection reflect changes to the Clinical Measures 
section, which was previously in section eight and now currently in 
section six. The Clinical Measures Section now expands previous project 
focus from three chronic diseases (i.e. Type 2 diabetes, Congestive 
Heart Failure, and Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease) to an 
inclusive list of clinical measures in order to reflect a patient's 
overall health and well-being as well as the organization's overall 
improved outcomes for the project. Proposed revisions also include 
measures to examine key elements cited for a successful rural care 
coordination program: (1) Collaboration, (2) leadership and workforce, 
(3) improved outcomes, and (4) sustainability.
    1. Collaboration--Utilizing a collaborative approach to coordinate 
and deliver health care services through a consortium, in which member 
organizations actively engage in integrated, coordinated, patient-
centered delivery of health care services.
    2. Leadership and Workforce--Developing and strengthening a highly 
skilled care coordination workforce to respond to vulnerable 
populations' unmet needs within the rural communities.
    3. Improved Outcomes--Expanding access and improving care quality 
and delivery, and health outcomes through evidence-based model and/or 
promising practices tailored to meet the local populations' needs.
    4. Sustainability--Developing and strengthening care coordination 
program's financial sustainability by establishing effective revenue 
sources such as expanded service reimbursement, resource sharing, and/
or contributions from partners at the

[[Page 76586]]

community, county, regional, and state levels.
    With the continuing shift in the healthcare environment towards 
provision of value-based care and utilization of reimbursement 
strategies through Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services quality 
reporting programs, the latest competitive Rural Health Care 
Coordination Program cohort also aligned with this shift. An increased 
number of sophisticated applicants leveraging increasingly intricate 
reporting methodologies for quality data collection, utilization and 
analysis has resulted in an estimate of burden hours more in line with 
the realities of the health care landscape. In addition, the total 
number of responses has increased to 10 since the previous Notice of 
Award. This is due to a new Rural Health Care Coordination Program 
grant cycle with an increased number of awardees and therefore an 
increased number of respondents.
    Need and Proposed Use of the Information: For this program, 
performance measures were drafted to provide data to the program and to 
enable HRSA to provide aggregate program data required by Congress 
under the Government Performance and Results Act of 1993. These 
measures cover the principal topic areas of interest to the Federal 
Office of Rural Health Policy, including: (a) Access to care; (b) 
population demographics; (c) staffing; (d) consortium/network; (e) 
sustainability; and (f) project specific domains. All measures will 
speak to HRSA's progress toward meeting the goals set.
    Likely Respondents: Recipients of the Rural Health Care 
Coordination Program funding.
    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 and 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
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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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Rural Health Care Coordination                10               1              10             3.5              35
 Grant Program Measures.........
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    Total.......................              10  ..............              10  ..............              35
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    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. 2020-26254 Filed 11-27-20; 8:45 am]
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