[Federal Register Volume 86, Number 242 (Tuesday, December 21, 2021)]
[Notices]
[Pages 72239-72241]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2021-27600]


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DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention

[60-Day-22-0976; Docket No. CDC-2021-0130]


Proposed Data Collection Submitted for Public Comment and 
Recommendations

AGENCY: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), Department of 
Health and Human Services (HHS).

ACTION: Notice with comment period.

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SUMMARY: The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), as part 
of its continuing effort to reduce public burden and maximize the 
utility of government information, invites the general public and other 
federal agencies the opportunity to comment on a proposed and/or 
continuing information collection, as required by the Paperwork 
Reduction Act of 1995. This notice invites comment on a proposed 
information collection project titled 2022 Million Hearts[supreg] 
Hypertension Control Champions Challenge. This program will be used to 
identify clinicians, clinical practices, and health systems that have 
exceptional rates of hypertension control and recognize them as 2022 
Million Hearts[supreg] Hypertension Control Champions.

DATES: CDC must receive written comments on or before February 22, 
2022.

ADDRESSES: You may submit comments, identified by Docket No. CDC-2021-
0130 by any of the following methods:
     Federal eRulemaking Portal: Regulations.gov. Follow the 
instructions for submitting comments.
     Mail: Jeffrey M. Zirger, Information Collection Review 
Office, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 1600 Clifton Road 
NE, MS H21-8, Atlanta, Georgia 30329.
    Instructions: All submissions received must include the agency name 
and Docket Number. CDC will post, without change, all relevant comments 
to regulations.gov.
    Please note: Submit all comments through the Federal eRulemaking 
portal (regulations.gov) or by U.S. mail to the address listed above.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: To request more information on the 
proposed project or to obtain a copy of the information collection plan 
and instruments, contact Jeffrey M. Zirger, Information Collection 
Review Office, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 1600 Clifton 
Road NE, MS H21-8, Atlanta, Georgia 30329; phone: 404-639-7118; Email: 
[email protected].

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. In addition, the PRA also requires 
federal agencies to provide a 60-day notice in the Federal Register 
concerning each proposed collection of information, including each new 
proposed collection, each proposed extension of existing collection of 
information, and each reinstatement of previously approved information 
collection before submitting the collection to the OMB for approval. To 
comply with this requirement, we are publishing this notice of a 
proposed data collection as described below.
    The OMB is particularly interested in comments that will help:
    1. Evaluate whether the proposed collection of information is 
necessary

[[Page 72240]]

for the proper performance of the functions of the agency, including 
whether the information will have practical utility;
    2. Evaluate the accuracy of the agency's estimate of the burden of 
the proposed collection of information, including the validity of the 
methodology and assumptions used;
    3. Enhance the quality, utility, and clarity of the information to 
be collected;
    4. Minimize the burden of the collection of information on those 
who are to respond, including through the use of appropriate automated, 
electronic, mechanical, or other technological collection techniques or 
other forms of information technology, e.g., permitting electronic 
submissions of responses; and
    5. Assess information collection costs.

Proposed Project

    2022 Million Hearts[supreg] Hypertension Control Champions 
Challenge (OMB Control No. 0920-0976, Exp. 11/30/2022)--Revision--
National Center for Chronic Disease and Public Health Promotion 
(NCCDPHP), Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).

Background and Brief Description

    Million Hearts[supreg] is a national initiative to prevent one 
million heart attacks and strokes by 2022. In order to prevent one 
million cardiovascular events (e.g., heart attacks and strokes), we 
need to decrease smoking, sodium consumption and physical inactivity by 
20%; improve performance on quality-of-care measures for appropriate 
aspirin use, blood pressure control, cholesterol management, and 
smoking cessation to 80%; and improve outcomes for priority populations 
disproportionately burdened by cardiovascular disease.
    Over the last nine years, we have seen tremendous progress by 
providers and health care systems that focus on improving their 
performance in controlling patients' blood pressure. Getting to 80% 
blood pressure control (defined as <140/<90 mm Hg) would mean that 10 
million more Americans with hypertension would have their blood 
pressure under control, and be at substantially lower risk for strokes, 
heart attacks, kidney failure, and other related cardiovascular events. 
For more information about the initiative, visit https://millionhearts.hhs.gov/. Million Hearts[supreg] is a registered 
trademark of the Department of Health and Human Services.
    The challenge is an important way to call attention to the need for 
improved hypertension control, provides a powerful motivation and 
target for clinicians, and will improve understanding of successful 
implementation strategies at the health system level. It will identify 
clinicians, clinical practices, and health systems that have 
exceptional rates of hypertension control and recognize them as 2022 
Million Hearts[supreg] Hypertension Control Champions. To support 
improved quality of care delivered to patients with hypertension, 
Million Hearts[supreg] will document the systems, strategies, 
processes, and staffing that contribute to the exceptional blood 
pressure control rates achieved by Champions.
    The challenge is authorized by Public Law 111-358, the America 
Creating Opportunities to Meaningfully Promote Excellence in 
Technology, Education and Science Reauthorization Act of 2010 (COMPETES 
Act). Applicants for the 2022 Million Hearts[supreg] Hypertension 
Control Challenge will be asked to provide two hypertension control 
rates for the practice's or health system's hypertensive population: A 
current rate for the most recent 12-month reporting period (e.g., 1/1/
2021-12/31/2021) and a previous rate for the 12-month period 
immediately preceding the most recent reporting period (e.g., 1/1/2020-
12/31/2020). Applicants will also be asked to provide the prevalence of 
hypertension in their population (more details provided below), 
describe some population characteristics (such as urban/rural location, 
percent minority, percent enrolled in Medicaid, percent with no health 
insurance, and percent whose primary language is not English) and 
strategies used by the practice or health system that support 
improvements in blood pressure control. A copy of the application form 
will be available on the Challenge website for the duration of the 
Challenge.
    To be eligible for recognition as a Million Hearts[supreg] 
Hypertension Control Champion under this challenge, an individual or 
entity:
    (1) Shall have completed the application form in its entirety to 
participate in the competition under the rules developed by HHS/CDC;
    (2) Shall have complied with all eligibility requirements and 
satisfy the requirements in one of the following subparts:
    a. Be a U.S. licensed clinician (i.e., MD, DO, nurse practitioner, 
or physician assistant), practicing in any U.S. setting, who provides 
ongoing care for adult patients with hypertension. The individual must 
be a citizen or permanent resident of the U.S.;
    b. Be a U.S. incorporated clinical practice, defined as any 
practice with two or more U.S. licensed clinicians who by formal 
arrangement share responsibility for a common panel of patients, 
practice at the same physical location or street address, and provide 
continuing medical care for adult patients with hypertension;
    c. Be a health system, incorporated in and maintaining a primary 
place of business in the U.S., that provides continuing medical care 
for adult patients with hypertension. We encourage large health systems 
(those that are comprised of a large number of geographically dispersed 
clinics and/or have multiple hospital locations) to consider having one 
or a few of the highest performing clinics or regional affiliates apply 
individually instead of the health system applying as a whole;
    (3) Must treat all adult patients with hypertension in the 
practice, not a selected subgroup of patients;
    (4) Must have a data management system (electronic or paper) that 
allows HHS/CDC or their contractor to verify data submitted;
    (5) Must treat a minimum of 500 adult patients annually and have a 
hypertension control rate (blood pressure <140 mm Hg systolic and <90 
mm Hg diastolic) of at least 80%;
    (6) May not be a federal entity or federal employee acting within 
the scope of their employment;
    (7) An HHS employee must not work on their application(s) during 
assigned duty hours;
    (8) Shall not be an employee of or contractor at CDC;
    (9) Must agree to participate in a data validation process to be 
conducted by a reputable independent contractor. Data will be kept 
confidential by the contractor to the extent applicable law allows and 
will be shared with the CDC, in aggregate form only (e.g., the 
hypertension control rate for the practice not individual patients' 
hypertension values);
    (10) Must agree to sign, without revisions, a Business Associate 
Agreement with the contractor conducting the data validation.
    (11) Must have a written policy in place about conducting periodic 
background checks on all providers and taking appropriate action based 
on the results of the check. CDC's contractor may also request to 
review the policy and any supporting information deemed necessary. In 
addition, a health system background check will be conducted by CDC or 
a CDC contractor that includes a search for the Joint Commission 
sanctions and current investigations for serious institutional 
misconduct (e.g., attorney general investigation). Eligibility status, 
based upon the above-

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referenced written policy, appropriate action, and background check, 
will be determined at the discretion of the CDC consistent with CDC's 
public health mission.
    (12) Must agree to be recognized if selected and agree to 
participate in an interview to develop a success story that describes 
the systems and processes that support hypertension control among 
patients. Champions will be recognized on the Million Hearts[supreg] 
website. Strategies used by Champions that support hypertension control 
may be written into a success story, placed on the Million 
Hearts[supreg] website, used in press releases, publications, and 
attributed to Champions.
    No cash prize will be awarded. Champions will receive national 
recognition. CDC requests OMB approval for an estimated 215 annual 
burden hours. There are no costs to respondents other than their time 
to participate.

                                        Estimated Annualized Burden Hours
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                                                                     Number of    Average burden
      Type of respondents           Form name        Number of     responses per   per response    Total burden
                                                    respondents     respondent      (in hours)      (in hours)
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Physician, practices and        Million                      200               1           30/60             100
 healthcare systems.             Hearts[supreg]
                                 Hypertension
                                 Control
                                 Champion
                                 Application
                                 Form.
Finalists.....................  Million                       40               1               2              80
                                 Hearts[supreg]
                                 Hypertension
                                 Control
                                 Champion Data
                                 Verification
                                 Form.
Champions.....................  Interview Guide:              35               1               1              35
                                 Million
                                 Hearts[supreg]
                                 Hypertension
                                 Control
                                 Champion.
                                                 ---------------------------------------------------------------
    Total.....................  ................  ..............  ..............  ..............             215
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Jeffrey M. Zirger,
Lead, Information Collection Review Office, Office of Scientific 
Integrity, Office of Science, Centers for Disease Control and 
Prevention.
[FR Doc. 2021-27600 Filed 12-20-21; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4163-18-P