[Federal Register Volume 89, Number 21 (Wednesday, January 31, 2024)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 6019-6021]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2024-01094]


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DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES

Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services

42 CFR Parts 409, 410, 414, 424, 484, 488, and 489

[CMS-1780-CN]
RIN 0938-AV03


Medicare Program; Calendar Year (CY) 2024 Home Health (HH) 
Prospective Payment System Rate Update; HH Quality Reporting Program 
Requirements; HH Value-Based Purchasing Expanded Model Requirements; 
Home Intravenous Immune Globulin Items and Services; Hospice Informal 
Dispute Resolution and Special Focus Program Requirements, Certain 
Requirements for Durable Medical Equipment Prosthetics and Orthotics 
Supplies; and Provider and Supplier Enrollment Requirements; Correction

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

ACTION: Final rule; correction.

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SUMMARY: This document corrects technical errors in the final rule that 
appeared in the November 13, 2023 Federal Register titled ``Medicare 
Program; Calendar Year (CY) 2024 Home Health (HH) Prospective Payment 
System Rate Update; HH Quality Reporting Program Requirements; HH 
Value-Based Purchasing Expanded Model Requirements; Home Intravenous 
Immune Globulin Items and Services; Hospice Informal Dispute Resolution 
and Special Focus Program Requirements, Certain Requirements for 
Durable Medical Equipment Prosthetics and Orthotics Supplies; and 
Provider and Supplier Enrollment Requirements'' (referred to hereafter 
as the ``CY 2024 HH PPS final rule'').

DATES: Effective date: This correcting document is effective January 
31, 2024.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: For questions about the Home Health 
Quality Reporting Program (HH QRP), send your inquiry via email to 
[email protected].
    For questions about the expanded Home Health Value-Based Purchasing 
Model, please visit the Expanded HHVBP Model web page at https://innovation.cms.gov/innovation-models/expanded-home-health-value-based-purchasing-model; send your inquiry via email to 
[email protected]; or call Marcie O'Reilly at (410) 786-9764.
    For questions about the hospice informal dispute resolution send 
inquiries to [email protected], and for the special focus 
program, send your inquiry to [email protected], or call 
Thomas Pryor at (410) 786-1332.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

I. Background

    This correcting document identifies and corrects errors in FR Doc. 
2023-24455 of November 13, 2023 (88 FR 77676). The corrections in this 
correcting document are effective January 1, 2024, as if they had been 
included in the document that appeared in the November 13, 2023, 
Federal Register.

II. Summary of Errors

    On pages 77680, 77761, 77767, and 77851 in our discussion of the 
Home Health Quality Reporting Program (HH QRP), we made several 
typographical errors.
    On pages 77778 and 77779, in a table regarding the proposed 
measures for the Home Health Value-Based Purchasing Model (HHVBP), we 
made typographical and technical errors.
    On pages 77801, 77802, and 77807, in our discussion of the Hospice 
Informal Dispute Resolution and Special Focus Program, we made several 
typographical and technical errors.
    We are correcting these errors in section IV. of this correcting 
document.

III. Waiver of Proposed Rulemaking and Delay in Effective Date

    Under 5 U.S.C. 553(b) of the Administrative Procedure Act (APA), 
the agency is required to publish a notice of the proposed rulemaking 
in the Federal Register before the provisions of a rule take effect. 
Similarly, section 1871(b)(1) of the Social Security Act (the Act) 
requires the Secretary to provide for notice of the proposed rulemaking 
in the Federal Register and provide a period of not less than 60 days 
for public comment. In addition, section 553(d) of the APA, and section 
1871(e)(1)(B)(i) of the Act mandate a 30-day delay in effective date 
after issuance or publication of a rule. Sections 553(b)(B) and 
553(d)(3) of the APA provide for exceptions from the notice and comment 
and delay in effective date APA requirements; in cases in which these 
exceptions apply, sections 1871(b)(2)(C) and 1871(e)(1)(B)(ii) of the 
Act provide exceptions from the notice and 60-day comment period and 
delay in effective date requirements of the Act as well. Section 
553(b)(B) of the APA and section 1871(b)(2)(C) of the Act authorize an 
agency to dispense with normal rulemaking requirements for good cause 
if the agency makes a finding that the notice and comment process are 
impracticable, unnecessary, or contrary to the public interest. In 
addition, both section 553(d)(3) of the

[[Page 6020]]

APA and section 1871(e)(1)(B)(ii) of the Act allow the agency to avoid 
the 30-day delay in effective date where such delay is contrary to the 
public interest and an agency includes a statement of support.
    We believe that this final rule correction does not constitute a 
rule that would be subject to the notice and comment or delayed 
effective date requirements. This document corrects technical errors in 
the preamble of the CY 2024 HH PPS final rule but does not make 
substantive changes to the policies or payment methodologies that were 
adopted in the final rule. As a result, this final rule correction is 
intended to ensure that the information in the CY 2024 HH PPS final 
rule accurately reflects the policies adopted in that document.
    In addition, even if this were a rule to which the notice and 
comment procedures and delayed effective date requirements applied, we 
find that there is good cause to waive such requirements. Undertaking 
further notice and comment procedures to incorporate the corrections in 
this document into the final rule or delaying the effective date would 
be contrary to the public interest because it is in the public's 
interest for providers to receive information regarding the relevant 
Medicare payment policy in as timely a manner as possible, and to 
ensure that the CY 2024 HH PPS final rule accurately reflects our 
policies. Furthermore, such procedures would be unnecessary, as we are 
not altering our payment methodologies or policies, but rather, we are 
simply implementing correctly the methodologies and policies that we 
previously proposed, requested comment on, and subsequently finalized. 
This final rule correction is intended solely to ensure that the CY 
2024 HH PPS final rule accurately reflects these payment methodologies 
and policies. Therefore, we believe we have good cause to waive the 
notice and comment and effective date requirements. Moreover, even if 
these corrections were considered to be retroactive rulemaking, they 
would be authorized under section 1871(e)(1)(A)(ii) of the Act, which 
permits the Secretary to issue a rule for the Medicare program with 
retroactive effect if the failure to do so would be contrary to the 
public interest. As we have explained previously, we believe it would 
be contrary to the public interest not to implement the corrections in 
this final rule correction for changes effective on January 1, 2024, 
because it is in the public's interest for providers to receive 
information regarding the relevant Medicare payment policy in as timely 
a manner as possible, and to ensure that the CY 2024 HH PPS final rule 
accurately reflects our policies.

IV. Correction of Errors

    In FR Doc. 2023-24455 of November 13, 2023 (88 FR 77676), make the 
following corrections:
    1. On page 77680, top of the page, the table titled ``Table Al: 
Summary of Costs, Transfers, and Benefits'', second row (HH QRP), third 
column (Transfers), line 6, the phrase ``M2220--Therapy Needs'' is 
corrected to read ``M2200--Therapy Need''.
    2. On page 77761, first column, second full paragraph, line 6, the 
date ``April 1, 2024'' is corrected to read ``April 1, 2023''.
    3. On page 77767, in the third column,
    a. First partial paragraph, line 7, the date ``April 1, 2024'' is 
corrected to read ``April 1, 2023''.
    b. First full paragraph, line 6, the date ``April 1, 2024'' is 
corrected to read ``April 1, 2023''.
    4. On page 77778, in the table titled ``TABLE D2: PROPOSED MEASURE 
SET FOR THE EXPANDED HHVBP MODEL'', columns 3 (Numerator) and 4 
(Denominator) for the listed entries are corrected to read as follows:
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[GRAPHIC] [TIFF OMITTED] TR31JA24.077

    5. On page 77779, following the table titled ``Table D2: Proposed 
Measure Set for the Expanded HHVBP Model'', table note 3 `` \3\ https://www.cms.gov/files/document/hh-qrp-specificationspotentiallypreventablehospitalizations.pdf'' is corrected 
to read `` \3\ https://www.cms.gov/files/document/home-health-outcome-measures-table-oasis-e2023.pdf''.
    6. On page 77801, first column, first partial paragraph, line 4, 
the phrase ``the iQIES).'' is corrected to read ``the iQIES.''.
    7. On page 77802,
    a. First column, first full paragraph, line 32, the phrase `` 
`Sometimes';'' is corrected to read `` `Sometimes'.''.
    b. Second column, first full paragraph, line 11, the phrase ``top-
box option: 9-10)'' is corrected to read ``top-box options: 9-10)''.
    8. On page 77807, second column, second full paragraph, line 5, the 
term ``BBVs'' is corrected to read ``bottom-box scores''.
    9. On page 77851, top half of the page, first column, sixth full 
paragraph, lines 6 and 7, the date ``April 1, 2024'' is corrected to 
read ``April 1, 2023,''.

Elizabeth J. Gramling,
Executive Secretary, Department of Health and Human Services.
[FR Doc. 2024-01094 Filed 1-30-24; 8:45 am]
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