[Federal Register Volume 88, Number 189 (Monday, October 2, 2023)]
[Notices]
[Pages 67757-67758]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2023-21676]


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DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES

Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services

[CMS-9892-N]


Meeting Date for Ground Ambulance and Patient Billing (GAPB) 
Advisory Committee--October 31 and November 1, 2023

AGENCY: Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS), Department of 
Health and Human Services (HHS).

ACTION: Notice of meeting.

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SUMMARY: This notice announces that the date for the third public 
meeting of the Ground Ambulance and Patient Billing (GAPB) Advisory 
Committee is October 31, 2023 and November 1, 2023. The GAPB Advisory 
Committee will make recommendations with respect to the disclosure of 
charges and fees for ground ambulance services and insurance coverage, 
consumer protection and enforcement authorities of the Departments of 
Labor, Health and Human Services, and the Treasury (the Departments) 
and relevant States, and the prevention of balance billing to 
consumers. The recommendations shall address options, best practices, 
and identified standards to prevent instances of balance billing; steps 
that can be taken by State legislatures, State insurance regulators, 
State attorneys general, and other State officials as appropriate, 
consistent with current legal authorities regarding consumer 
protection; and legislative options for Congress to prevent balance 
billing.

DATES: 
    Virtual Meeting Date: The GAPB Advisory Committee will hold a 
virtual meeting on Tuesday, October 31, 2023 and Wednesday, November 1, 
2023 from 9:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m., Eastern Daylight Time.
    Registration Link: The virtual meeting will be open to the public 
and held via the Zoom webinar platform. Virtual attendance information 
will be provided upon registration. To register for this virtual 
meeting, please visit: https://priforum.zoomgov.com/webinar/register/WN_n40NyMM_Q0u3UFXul1IWTw. Attendance is open to the public subject to 
any technical or capacity limitations.
    Deadline for Registration: All individuals who plan to attend the 
virtual public meeting must register to attend. The deadline to 
register for the public meeting is Monday, October 30, 2023. Interested 
parties are encouraged to register as far in advance of the meeting as 
possible.
    A detailed agenda and materials will be available prior to the 
meeting on the GAPB Advisory Committee website at: https://www.cms.gov/medicare/regulations-guidance/advisory-committees/ground-ambulance-patient-billing-gapb.
    A recording and a summary of the meeting will be made available on 
the GAPB Advisory Committee website approximately 45 calendar days 
after the meeting.

ADDRESSES: Virtual Meeting Location: The October 31, 2023 and November 
1, 2023 public meeting will be held virtually via Zoom only.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Shaheen Halim, (410) 786-0641 or via 
email at [email protected].
    Press inquiries may be submitted by phone at (202) 690-6145 or via 
email at [email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

I. Background

    Section 117(a) of the No Surprises Act, enacted as part of the 
Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2021, div. BB, tit. I, Public Law 116-
260 (December 27, 2020), requires the Secretaries of Labor, Department 
of Health and Human Services (HHS), and the Treasury to establish and 
convene an advisory committee for the purpose of reviewing options to 
improve the disclosure of charges and fees for ground ambulance 
services, better inform consumers of insurance options for such 
services, and protect consumers from balance billing. The Ground 
Ambulance and Patient Billing (GAPB) Advisory Committee is governed by 
the provisions of the Federal Advisory Committee Act (FACA), Public Law 
92-463 (October 6, 1972), as amended, 5 U.S.C. app. 2. Information on 
past and current Committee activity can be found at: https://www.cms.gov/medicare/regulations-guidance/advisory-committees/ground-ambulance-patient-billing-gapb.

[[Page 67758]]

II. Advisory Committee Membership Roster

    On November 23, 2021, HHS published a Notice of Charter and 
Invitation for Member Nominations in the Federal Register for the GAPB 
Advisory Committee (86 FR 66565 through 66566). On December 16, 2022, 
HHS published a Federal Register Notice Announcing the 17 Members of 
the GAPB Advisory Committee (87 FR 77122 through 77123). A subsequent 
update to the Committee Roster was published on April 14, 2023 (88 FR 
23046).
    The 17 Members of the GAPB Advisory Committee are as follows:
     Asbel Montes--Committee Chairperson; Additional 
Representative determined necessary and appropriate by the Secretaries.
     Ali Khawar--Secretary of Labor's Designee.
     Carol Weiser--Secretary of the Treasury's Designee.
     Rogelyn McLean--Secretary of Health and Human Services' 
Designee.
     Gamunu Wijetunge--Department of Transportation--National 
Highway Traffic Safety Administration.
     Suzanne Prentiss--State Insurance Regulators.
     Adam Beck--Health Insurance Providers.
     Patricia Kelmar--Consumer Advocacy Groups.
     Gary Wingrove--Patient Advocacy Groups.
     Ayobami Ogunsola--State and Local Governments.
     Ritu Sahni--Physician specializing in emergency, trauma, 
cardiac, or stroke.
     Peter Lawrence--State Emergency Medical Services 
Officials.
     Shawn Baird--Emergency Medical Technicians, Paramedics, 
and Other Emergency Medical Services Personnel.
     Edward Van Horne--Representative of Various Segments of 
the Ground Ambulance Industry.
     Regina Godette-Crawford--Representative of Various 
Segments of the Ground Ambulance Industry.
     Rhonda Holden--Representative of Various Segments of the 
Ground Ambulance Industry.
     Loren Adler--Additional Representative determined 
necessary and appropriate by the Secretaries.
    The GAPB Advisory Committee Roster is also available on the GAPB 
Advisory Committee website at: https://www.cms.gov/medicare/regulations-guidance/advisory-committees/ground-ambulance-patient-billing-gapb. All future updates to the Advisory Committee Roster will 
be published on this website.

III. Meeting Agenda

    The third public meeting of the GAPB Advisory Committee will take 
place on October 31, 2023 and November 1, 2023. On October 31, 2023, 
the Committee will be presented with findings and recommendations from 
its subcommittees for discussion and deliberation. On November 1, 2023, 
the Committee will formally vote on which recommendations to adopt in 
its Report to the Secretaries. A more detailed agenda and materials 
will be made available prior to the meeting on the GAPB Advisory 
Committee website (listed previously).

IV. Public Participation

    The October 31, 2023 and November 1, 2023 GAPB Advisory Committee 
meeting will be open to the public. Attendance may be limited due to 
virtual meeting constraints. Interested parties are encouraged to 
register as far in advance of the meeting as possible. To register for 
the meeting, visit: https://www.cms.gov/medicare/regulations-guidance/advisory-committees/ground-ambulance-patient-billing-gapb. The Centers 
for Medicaid Services (CMS) is committed to providing equal access to 
this meeting for all participants and to ensuring Section 508 
compliance. Closed captioning will be provided. To request alternative 
formats or services because of a disability, such as sign language 
interpreters or other ancillary aids, refer to the contact person 
listed in the FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT section.

V. Submitting Written Comments

    Members of the public may submit written comments for consideration 
by the Committee at any time via email to 
[email protected]. Additionally, members of the public 
will have the opportunity to submit comments during the October 31, 
2023 and November 1, 2023 virtual meeting through the chat feature of 
the Zoom webinar platform. Members of the public are encouraged to 
submit lengthy written comments (more than 3 sentences) to the email 
address above.

VI. Viewing Documents

    You may view the documents discussed in this notice at: https://www.cms.gov/medicare/regulations-guidance/advisory-committees/ground-ambulance-patient-billing-gapb.
    The Administrator of CMS, Chiquita Brooks-LaSure, having reviewed 
and approved this document, authorizes Chyana Woodyard, who is the 
Federal Register Liaison, to electronically sign this document for 
purposes of publication in the Federal Register.

Chyana Woodyard,
Federal Register Liaison, Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services.
[FR Doc. 2023-21676 Filed 9-29-23; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4120-01-P