Federal Register / Vol. 77, No. 97 / Friday, May 18, 2012 / Notices 29647 

Paperwork@cms.hhs.gov, or call the 

Reports Clearance Office on (410) 786– 

1326. 

To be assured consideration, 

comments and recommendations for the 

proposed information collections must 

be received by the OMB desk officer at 

the address below, no later than 5 p.m. 

on June 18, 2012. OMB, Office of 

Information and Regulatory Affairs, 

Attention: CMS Desk Officer, Fax 

Number: (202) 395–6974, Email: 

OIRA_submission@omb.eop.gov. 

Dated: May 15, 2012. 

Martique Jones, 

Director, Regulations Development Group, 

Division B, Office of Strategic Operations and 

Regulatory Affairs. 

[FR Doc. 2012–12108 Filed 5–16–12; 11:15 am] 

BILLING CODE 4120–01–P 

DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND 

HUMAN SERVICES 

Centers for Medicare & Medicaid 

Services 

[CMS–5052–N2] 

Medicare Program; Solicitation for 

Proposals for the Medicare Graduate 

Nurse Education Demonstration— 

Deadline Extension 

AGENCY: Centers for Medicare & 

Medicaid Services (CMS), HHS. 

ACTION: Notice of extension of deadline. 

SUMMARY: This notice extends the 

deadline for submission of proposals to 

apply to participate in the Medicare 

Graduate Nurse Education (GNE) 

Demonstration. 

DATES: Proposals will be considered 

timely if they are received on or before 

5 p.m., Eastern Standard Time (E.S.T.) 

on May 25, 2012. 

ADDRESSES: Proposals should be mailed 

to the following address: Centers for 

Medicare & Medicaid Services, Center 

for Medicare & Medicaid Innovation, 

Attention: Alexandre Laberge, Mail 

Stop: WB–06–05, 7500 Security 

Boulevard, Baltimore, Maryland 21244– 

1850. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Alexandre Laberge (410) 786–8625 or by 

email at GNE@cms.hhs.gov. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

General Information: Please refer to 

file code (CMS–5052–N2) on the 

application. Proposals (an unbound 

original and 10 electronic copies on CD– 

ROM) must be typed for clarity and 

should not exceed 50 double-spaced 

pages, exclusive of cover letter, the 

executive summary, resumes, forms, 

and no more than 15 pages supporting 

documentation. Because of staffing and 

resource limitations, we cannot accept 

proposals by facsimile (FAX) 

transmission. Applicants may, but are 

not required to, submit a total of 10 

copies to assure that each reviewer 

receives a proposal in the manner 

intended by the applicant (for example, 

collated, tabulated color copies). Hard 

copies and CD–ROM electronic copies 

must be identical. 

Eligible Organizations: As set forth in 

section 5509 of the Affordable Care Act 

an ‘‘eligible hospital’’ may apply to 

perform the responsibilities specified. 

Section 5509(e)(5) of the Affordable 

Care Act defines an ‘‘eligible hospital’’ 

to mean a hospital (as defined in section 

1861(e) of the Social Security Act (the 

Act) (42 U.S.C. 1395x)) or a critical 

access hospital (as defined in section 

1861(mm)(1) of the Act) that has a 

written agreement in place with—(A) 1 

or more applicable schools of nursing; 

and (B) 2 or more applicable nonhospital community-based care settings. 

The written agreement must meet 

specific requirements set forth in 

section 5509 of the Affordable Care Act 

including—(1) The obligations of the 

eligible partners with respect to the 

provision of qualified training; and (2) 

the obligation of the eligible hospital to 

reimburse such eligible partners 

applicable (in a timely manner) for the 

costs of such qualified training 

attributable to partner. The 

Demonstration will include up to five 

eligible hospitals. 

I. Background 

We are seeking eligible hospital 

applicants, which includes critical 

access hospitals, to partner with one or 

more applicable schools of nursing 

(SONs) and two or more applicable 

nonhospital community-based care 

settings (CCSs) to provide advanced 

practice registered nurse (APRN) 

students with qualified training. See 

section 5509(e) of the Affordable Care 

Act for the definitions of the terms used 

in the preceding sentence. At least half 

of the clinical training must be provided 

in non-hospital CCSs which may 

include federally qualified health 

centers (FQHCs), rural health clinics 

(RHCs), and other nonhospital settings 

as determined appropriate by the 

Secretary. However, the Secretary may 

waive the requirement under section 

5509(e)(7)(A)(ii) of the Affordable Care 

Act with respect to eligible hospitals 

located in rural or medically 

underserved areas. 

On March 22, 2012, we posted a 

solicitation for proposals on the 

Innovation Center Web site. In addition, 

in the March 22, 2012 Federal Register 

(77 FR 16841) we published a notice of 

solicitation for proposals to participate 

in the Graduate Nurse Education (GNE) 

Demonstration. The Demonstration 

provides a source of Medicare funding 

for the reasonable costs for clinical 

training attributable to the incremental 

increase in the number of APRN 

students enrolled in participating SONs 

during the Demonstration relative to an 

established baseline. Section 5509 of the 

Affordable Care Act sets forth 

limitations on the reasonable costs 

reimbursable under the Demonstration. 

We will make interim payments to 

selected hospitals with a cost settlement 

process using Medicare reasonable cost 

principles. Participating eligible 

hospitals must establish written 

agreements with one or more applicable 

SONs and two or more applicable nonhospital CCSs that define the obligations 

of each partner with respect to the 

provision of qualified training and the 

corresponding eligible hospital’s 

obligation to reimburse eligible partners 

applicable (in a timely manner) for the 

costs of such qualified training 

attributable to the partner and the 

mechanism for partner reimbursement. 

As outlined in the GNE Solicitation, 

applicant hospitals may partner with 

other hospitals in the Demonstration 

and we will support an expanded 

configuration of hospital relationships 

under certain circumstances. For more 

details, see the Solicitation, which is 

available on the Innovation Center Web 

site at http://www.innovations.cms.gov/ 

initiatives/GNE/index.html. 

II. Provisions of This Notice 

The CMS Innovation Center has 

received much interest and a large 

number of inquires about the GNE 

Demonstration announced on the CMS 

Web site and in the Federal Register. In 

response to requests from the 

community of potential applicants to 

allow for some additional time to 

prepare the proposals for participation 

in the Demonstration, and in light of our 

continued commitment to work in 

partnership with our stakeholders, the 

Innovation Center has modified the 

deadline for proposals so that the 

applications from eligible hospital 

applicants are due by the date specified 

in the DATES section of this notice. 

III. Information Collection 

Requirements 

In accordance with section 5509(a)(4) 

of the Affordable Care Act, this 

information collection requirement is 

not subject to the Paperwork Reduction 

Act of 1995. Consequently, it need not 

be reviewed by the Office of 

Management and Budget under the 

mstockstill on DSK4VPTVN1PROD with NOTICES

29648 Federal Register / Vol. 77, No. 97 / Friday, May 18, 2012 / Notices 

authority of the Paperwork Reduction 

Act of 1995 (44 U.S.C. chapter 35). 

Authority: Section 5509 of the Affordable 

Care Act. 

(Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance 

Program No. 93.773, Medicare—Hospital 

Insurance; and Program No. 93.774, 

Medicare—Supplementary Medical 

Insurance Program) 

Dated: May 15, 2012. 

Marilyn Tavenner, 

Acting Administrator, Centers for Medicare 

& Medicaid Services. 

[FR Doc. 2012–12131 Filed 5–17–12; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 4120–01–P 

DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND 

HUMAN SERVICES 

Centers for Medicare & Medicaid 

Services 

[CMS–9073–N] 

Medicare and Medicaid Programs; 

Quarterly Listing of Program 

Issuances—January Through March 

2012 

AGENCY: Centers for Medicare & 

Medicaid Services (CMS), HHS. 

ACTION: Notice. 

SUMMARY: This quarterly notice lists 

CMS manual instructions, substantive 

and interpretive regulations, and other 

Federal Register notices that were 

published from January through March 

2012, relating to the Medicare and 

Medicaid programs and other programs 

administered by CMS. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: It is 

possible that an interested party may 

need specific information and not be 

able to determine from the listed 

information whether the issuance or 

regulation would fulfill that need. 

Consequently, we are providing contact 

persons to answer general questions 

concerning each of the addenda 

published in this notice. 

Addenda Contact Phone No. 

I CMS Manual Instructions ................................................................................................ Ismael Torres .............................. (410) 786–1864 

II Regulation Documents Published in the Federal Register ........................................... Terri Plumb ................................. (410) 786–4481 

III CMS Rulings .................................................................................................................. Tiffany Lafferty ............................ (410) 786–7548 

IV Medicare National Coverage Determinations ............................................................... Wanda Belle ............................... (410) 786–7491 

V FDA-Approved Category B IDEs .................................................................................... John Manlove ............................. (410) 786–6877 

VI Collections of Information .............................................................................................. Mitch Bryman .............................. (410) 786–5258 

VII Medicare-Approved Carotid Stent Facilities ................................................................. Sarah J. McClain ........................ (410) 786–2294 

VIII American College of Cardiology-National Cardiovascular Data Registry Sites .......... JoAnna Baldwin, MS .................. (410) 786–7205 

IX Medicare’s Active Coverage-Related Guidance Documents ........................................ Lori Ashby ................................... (410) 786–6322 

X One-time Notices Regarding National Coverage Provisions ......................................... Lori Ashby ................................... (410) 786–6322 

XI National Oncologic Positron Emission Tomography Registry Sites ............................. Stuart Caplan, RN, MAS ............ (410) 786–8564 

XII Medicare-Approved Ventricular Assist Device (Destination Therapy) Facilities .......... JoAnna Baldwin, MS .................. (410) 786–7205 

XIII Medicare-Approved Lung Volume Reduction Surgery Facilities ................................ JoAnna Baldwin, MS .................. (410) 786–7205 

XIV Medicare-Approved Bariatric Surgery Facilities .......................................................... Kate Tillman, RN, MAS .............. (410) 786–9252 

XV Fluorodeoxyglucose Positron Emission Tomography for Dementia Trials .................. Stuart Caplan, RN, MAS ............ (410) 786–8564 

All Other Information ............................................................................................................ Annette Brewer ........................... (410) 786–6580 

I. Background 

Among other things, the Centers for 

Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) is 

responsible for administering the 

Medicare and Medicaid programs and 

coordination and oversight of private 

health insurance. Administration and 

oversight of these programs involves the 

following: (1) Furnishing information to 

Medicare and Medicaid beneficiaries, 

health care providers, and the public; 

and (2) maintaining effective 

communications with CMS regional 

offices, State governments, State 

Medicaid agencies, State survey 

agencies, various providers of health 

care, all Medicare contractors that 

process claims and pay bills, National 

Association of Insurance Commissioners 

(NAIC), health insurers, and other 

stakeholders. To implement the various 

statutes on which the programs are 

based, we issue regulations under the 

authority granted to the Secretary of the 

Department of Health and Human 

Services under sections 1102, 1871, 

1902, and related provisions of the 

Social Security Act (the Act) and Public 

Health Service Act. We also issue 

various manuals, memoranda, and 

statements necessary to administer and 

oversee the programs efficiently. 

Section 1871(c) of the Act requires 

that we publish a list of all Medicare 

manual instructions, interpretive rules, 

statements of policy, and guidelines of 

general applicability not issued as 

regulations at least every 3 months in 

the Federal Register. 

II. Revised Format for the Quarterly 

Issuance Notices 

While we are publishing the quarterly 

notice required by section 1871(c) of the 

Act, we will no longer republish 

duplicative information that is available 

to the public elsewhere. We believe this 

approach is in alignment with CMS’ 

commitment to the general principles of 

the President’s Executive Order 13563 

released January 2011entitled 

‘‘Improving Regulation and Regulatory 

Review,’’ which promotes modifying 

and streamlining an agency’s regulatory 

program to be more effective in 

achieving regulatory objectives. Section 

6 of Executive Order 13563 requires 

agencies to identify regulations that may 

be ‘‘outmoded, ineffective, insufficient, 

or excessively burdensome, and to 

modify, streamline, expand or repeal 

them in accordance with what has been 

learned.’’ This approach is also in 

alignment with the President’s Open 

Government and Transparency Initiative 

that establishes a system of 

transparency, public participation, and 

collaboration. 

Therefore, this quarterly notice 

provides only the specific updates that 

have occurred in the 3-month period 

along with a hyperlink to the full listing 

that is available on the CMS Web site or 

the appropriate data registries that are 

used as our resources. This information 

is the most current up-to-date 

information and will be available earlier 

than we publish our quarterly notice. 

We believe the Web site list provides 

more timely access for beneficiaries, 

providers, and suppliers. We also 

believe the Web site offers a more 

convenient tool for the public to find 

the full list of qualified providers for 

these specific services and offers more 

flexibility and ‘‘real time’’ accessibility. 

In addition, many of the Web sites have 

listservs; that is, the public can 

subscribe and receive immediate 

notification of any updates to the Web 

site. These listservs avoid the need to 

check the Web site, as notification of 

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