[Federal Register Volume 88, Number 200 (Wednesday, October 18, 2023)]
[Notices]
[Pages 71878-71879]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2023-22972]


-----------------------------------------------------------------------

DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES

Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration


Agency Information Collection Activities: Submission for OMB 
Review; Comment Request

    Periodically, the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services 
Administration (SAMHSA) will publish a summary of information 
collection requests under OMB review, in compliance with the Paperwork 
Reduction Act (44 U.S.C. chapter 35). To request a copy of these 
documents, call the SAMHSA Reports Clearance Officer at (240) 276-0361.

Project: SAMHSA Generic Clearance for the Collection of Qualitative 
Research and Assessment

    SAMHSA is requesting approval from the Office of Management and 
Budget (OMB) for their Generic clearance for purposes of conducting 
qualitative research. SAMHSA conducts qualitative research to gain a 
better understanding of emerging substance use and mental health policy 
issues, improve the development and quality of instruments, and to 
ensure SAMHSA leadership, centers and offices have recent data and 
information to inform program and policy decision-making. SAMHSA is 
requesting approval for at least four types of qualitative research: 
(a) interviews, (b) focus groups, (c) questionnaires, and (d) other 
qualitative methods.
    SAMHSA is the agency within the U.S. Department of Health and Human 
Services (HHS) that leads public health efforts to advance the 
behavioral health of the nation and to improve the lives of individuals 
living with mental and substance use disorders, and their families. 
It's mission is to lead public health and service delivery efforts that 
promote mental health, prevent substance misuse, and provide treatments 
and supports to foster recovery while ensuring equitable access and 
better outcomes. SAMHSA pursues this mission by providing grant

[[Page 71879]]

funding opportunities and guidance to states and territories, as well 
as tribal and local communities; technical assistance to grantees and 
practitioners; publishing and sharing resources for individuals and 
family members seeking information on prevention, harm reduction, 
treatment and recovery; collecting, analyzing, and sharing behavioral 
health data; collaborating with other Federal agencies to evaluate 
programs and improve policies; and raising awareness of available 
resources through educational messaging campaigns and events. Integral 
to this role, SAMHSA conducts qualitative research and evaluation 
studies, develops policy analyses, and estimates the cost and benefits 
of policy alternatives for SAMHSA related programs.
    The goal of establishing the SAMHSA Generic Clearance for the 
Collection of Qualitative Research and Assessmentis to help public 
health officials, policymakers, community practitioners, and the public 
to understand mental health and substance use trends and how they are 
evolving; inform the development and implementation of targeted 
evidence-based interventions; focus resources where they are needed 
most; and evaluate the success of programs and policies. A key 
objective is to decrease the burden on stakeholders while expanding and 
improving data collection, analysis, evaluation, and dissemination. To 
achieve this objective, SAMHSA is streamlining and modernizing data 
collection efforts, while also coordinating evaluation across the 
agency to ensure funding and policies are data driven. Additionally, 
the agency is utilizing rigorous evaluation and analytical processes 
that are in alignment with the Foundations for Evidence-Based 
Policymaking Act of 2018. SAMHSA, using robust methods to collect, 
analyze, and report valid, reliable, trustworthy, and protected data, 
is key to improving and impacting behavioral health treatment, 
prevention, and recovery for communities most in need. By using 
rigorous methods, and improving the quality and completeness of program 
data, data can be disaggregated across different population groups to 
assess disparities within the behavioral health care system. SAMHSA's 
vision will be accomplished by better leveraging optimal data to inform 
the agency's policies and programs.
    The qualitative research participants will include grant 
recipients; policy experts; national, state, and local public health 
representatives; human service, and healthcare providers; and 
representatives of other health organizations. A variety of instruments 
and platforms will be used to collect information from respondents. The 
annual burden hours requested (15,000) are based on the number of 
collections we expect to conduct over the requested period for this 
clearance. The burden estimates were calculated based on the amount of 
IC submissions to the 0930-0393 Fast Track Generic Clearance for the 
Collection of Qualitative Feedback on the Substance Abuse and Mental 
Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) Service Delivery that are 
ineligible for OMB approval under it. This Generic information 
collection will provide a viable replacement option. Internal 
assessments of projected IC submission over the next three years 
estimate the burden hours for this information collection to be 
approximately half that of the 0930-0393 Fast Track Generic Clearance 
for the Collection of Qualitative Feedback on the Substance Abuse and 
Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) Service Delivery.

                                                            Estimated Annualized Burden Table
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                                                                                          Number of     Average  burden
               Type of respondent                                Form                    Number of      responses per      hours  per      Total burden
                                                                                        respondents       respondent        response          hours
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
SAMHSA internal and external stakeholders.......  Qualitative Research..............          15,000                1                1           15,000
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

    Written comments and recommendations for the proposed information 
collection should be sent within 30 days of publication of this notice 
to www.reginfo.gov/public/do/PRAMain. Find this particular information 
collection by selecting ``Currently under 30-day Review--Open for 
Public Comments'' or by using the search function.

Alicia Broadus,
Public Health Advisor.
[FR Doc. 2023-22972 Filed 10-17-23; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4162-20-P