57294 Federal Register / Vol. 69, No. 185 / Friday, September 24, 2004 / Notices 

Advisory Committee on Diversity for 

Communications in the Digital Age is 

holding its fourth meeting, which will 

be held by teleconference. The meeting 

is scheduled, on an expedited basis, for 

October 4, 2004. Under 41 CFR 102–

3.150, the Commission is holding this 

meeting with less than 15 calendar days 

notice due to exceptional 

circumstances, specifically to address 

time-sensitive resolutions. Because of 

these special circumstances, the 

Committee took the step, even prior to 

the date of this Notice, of placing copies 

of the proposed resolutions on the FAC 

Web site and inviting Committee 

members by e-mail to submit comments 

for the public record. Any comments 

that are submitted will be made 

available on the Web site, which is 

accessible to the public. 

The Committee also notes that, 

effective September 27, 2004, Linda 

Blair will serve as the Designated 

Federal Officer.

DATES: October 4, 2004, 3 p.m., to 4 p.m.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Linda Blair, Designated Federal Officer 

of the Committee on Diversity, or 

Maureen C. McLaughlin, Alternate 

Designated Federal Officer of the 

Committee on Diversity, 202–418–2030, 

e-mail Linda.Blair@fcc.gov, 

Maureen.Mclaughlin@fcc.gov. Press 

Contact, Audrey Spivak, Office of Public 

Affairs, 202–418–0512, aspivak@fcc.gov.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The 

Diversity Committee was established by 

the Federal Communications 

Commission to examine current 

opportunities and develop 

recommendations for policies and 

practices that will further enhance the 

ability of minorities and women to 

participate in telecommunications and 

related industries. The Diversity 

Committee will prepare periodic and 

final reports to aid the FCC in its 

oversight responsibilities and its 

regulatory reviews in this area. In 

conjunction with such reports and 

analyses, the Diversity Committee will 

make recommendations to the FCC 

concerning the need for any guidelines, 

incentives, regulations or other policy 

approaches to promote diversity of 

participation in the communications 

sector. The Diversity Committee will 

also develop a description of best 

practices within the communications 

sector for promoting diversity of 

participation. 

Agenda 

The purpose of the meeting is to 

discuss two proposals: (1) A resolution 

urging the FCC to enforce its existing 

Designated Entity rules, including the 

rules setting aside certain C-Block 

broadband PCS spectrum for bidding 

only by ‘‘entrepreneurial’’ companies 

(i.e., small, minority or women-owned 

companies whose gross revenues and 

total assets are less than $125 million 

and $500 million, respectively); and (2) 

a resolution urging the FCC to adopt an 

NPRM seeking comment on ways to 

foster ownership diversity in the 

commercial FM radio band (92.1–107.9 

mHz). More details on these resolutions 

are available on the Advisory 

Committee’s Web site at http://

www.fcc.gov/DiversityFAC. Members of 

the Advisory Committee and the public 

may submit written comments at any 

time by following the instructions on the 

Web site. 

Public Participation 

Interested persons may contact Kevin 

Venters, (202) 418–2030, to obtain a 

number to call to participate in the 

teleconference, or may join the 

teleconference at the Federal 

Communications Commission, 

Commission Meeting Room, Room TW–

A402 and TW–A442, 445 12th St., SW., 

Washington, DC 20554. The Federal 

Communications Commission will 

attempt to accommodate as many 

people as possible. However, 

admittance will be limited to the seating 

available. A live RealAudio feed will be 

available over the Internet; information 

on how to tune in can be found at the 

Commission’s Web site, http://

www.fcc.gov.

Federal Communications Commission. 

Jane E. Mago, 

Designated Federal Officer.

[FR Doc. 04–21505 Filed 9–23–04; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 6712–01–P

DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND 

HUMAN SERVICES 

Office of the Secretary, Office of the 

General Counsel; Notice Regarding the 

Federal Tort Claims Act, the Federally 

Supported Health Centers Assistance 

Act, and the Indian Self-Determination 

and Education Assistance Act; 

Alternative Settlement Process for 

Certain Administrative Claims Under 

the Federal Tort Claims Act

AGENCY: Office of the General Counsel, 

Office of the Secretary.

ACTION: Notice of Pilot Program for an 

Alternative Settlement Process for 

Certain Administrative Claims Under 

the Federal Tort Claims Act. 

SUMMARY: The Secretary of Health and 

Human Services is implementing a Pilot 

Program to study the effectiveness of an 

Early Offers Alternative Dispute 

Resolution Process (‘‘Early Offers’’) for 

certain administrative tort claims under 

the Federal Tort Claims Act (‘‘FTCA’’). 

The Pilot Program becomes effective 

upon the publication of this Notice and 

will be applicable to administrative 

claims filed with the Department of 

Health and Human Services (‘‘HHS’’ or 

‘‘the Department’’) on or after the 

publication date. The Pilot Program 

applies to all medical negligence tort 

claims cognizable under the FTCA and 

arising from the acts or omissions of 

HHS employees or deemed employees. 

The Pilot Program does not create new 

causes of action or change the 

requirements of the FTCA for the 

handling of administrative tort claims or 

the approval of administrative tort claim 

settlements. See 28 U.S.C. 2672 and 28 

CFR Part 14.

DATES: This notice is effective upon 

publication in the Federal Register.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Richard Bergeron, Office of the General 

Counsel, (202) 619–0150, U.S. 

Department of Health and Human 

Services, 330 Independence Avenue, 

SW., Room 4760, Washington, DC 

20201.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION

I. Introduction 

The FTCA mandates that 

administrative tort claims arising out of 

the medical negligence of HHS 

employees and deemed employees must 

be submitted to HHS for investigation 

and potential resolution before a lawsuit 

can be filed against the United States. 28 

U.S.C. 1346(b) and 2671, et seq. Medical 

negligence claims against HHS may 

arise from acts or omissions of HHS 

employees (see, e.g., 42 U.S.C. 233(a)) or 

from the acts or omissions of deemed 

employees of HHS (see, e.g., 42 U.S.C. 

233(g); 25 U.S.C. 450f(d)). The 

resolution of those administrative 

claims requires the claimant and HHS to 

engage in negotiations that often include 

a number of offers and counteroffers, 

sometimes over the course of a number 

of months, and, then, if such 

negotiations are unsuccessful, the filing 

of a lawsuit against the United States. 

The Early Offers Pilot Program is 

designed to determine whether there is 

a better, quicker, less expensive method 

for resolving medical negligence claims. 

The Pilot Program applies to all medical 

negligence tort claims asserted under 

the FTCA and arising from the acts or 

omissions of HHS employees or deemed 

employees. The Pilot Program is a 

voluntary program available to 

claimants who submit timely tort claims 

under the FTCA. If a claim is not settled 

Federal Register / Vol. 69, No. 185 / Friday, September 24, 2004 / Notices 57295

under the Early Offers program, it will 

continue to be processed under HHS’s 

current procedures and may be resolved 

using traditional negotiating techniques. 

II. Background 

In its March 3, 2003 report entitled 

‘‘Addressing the New Health Care 

Crisis: Reforming the Medical Litigation 

System to Improve the Quality of Health 

Care,’’ the Department’s Office of the 

Assistant Secretary for Planning and 

Evaluation (OASPE) outlined the 

litigation crisis facing the Nation’s 

health care delivery system, the role of 

the litigation system in increasing 

medical malpractice insurance 

premiums, and the resulting reduction 

in the availability of quality, affordable 

health care. This report concluded that 

federal action is needed to address the 

impact of the medical litigation crisis on 

health care costs and quality of care, 

and emphasized the President’s support 

for federal reforms to implement steps 

in improving our health care system, 

including the establishment of a fair, 

predictable, and timely process for 

resolving medical malpractice cases.

The report noted that delay in claims 

resolution is a significant problem in the 

current medical liability litigation 

process. Litigation delays prevent 

patients injured by negligence from 

receiving compensation quickly. The 

Early Offers Pilot Program being 

implemented by HHS is one promising 

approach for fairly and promptly 

compensating patients injured by 

negligence without requiring them to go 

through time-consuming and expensive 

litigation. If the Pilot Program 

demonstrates that Early Offers are an 

effective method for fairly and promptly 

compensating patients injured by 

alleged medical malpractice, this 

method could be adopted by other 

federal agencies for a variety of tort 

claims, including medical negligence 

claims, and by the private sector. 

Like patients who bring claims against 

non-governmental health care providers, 

individuals who claim to be injured 

through the acts or omissions of HHS 

employees or deemed employees often 

face a lengthy, complicated, and 

expensive litigation process before their 

claims are adjudicated. This Pilot 

Program will evaluate whether the Early 

Offers mechanism described herein will 

encourage fair and speedy resolution of 

administrative claims in appropriate 

circumstances, to the benefit of both 

negligently injured patients and the 

United States. 

Participation in an Early Offers 

system by claimants and the Department 

is entirely voluntary and confidential (to 

the extent permitted by federal law). 

Under this program, a claimant can 

decide whether or not to submit an 

Early Offer to an independent third 

party (described below). Likewise, the 

Department will decide, with respect to 

each administrative tort claim within 

the scope of this program, whether or 

not to submit an Acceptance of Offer to 

the independent third party. 

Through use of an independent third 

party as a Settlement Depository (SD), 

the Early Offers system overcomes the 

concern that a settlement offer will be 

viewed by the other party as an 

indication of litigation weakness. Both 

the Department and the claimant would 

make their submissions of Acceptances 

of Offer and Early Offers confidentially 

to the SD. By utilizing an independent 

SD, neither the claimant nor the 

Department will know whether the 

other has submitted an Early Offer or an 

Acceptance of Offer with the SD unless 

the claimant’s Early Offer and the 

Department’s Acceptance of Offer result 

in a settlement. Whether an Early Offer 

had been submitted by the claimant or 

an Acceptance of Offer had been 

submitted by the Department, the terms 

of any such Early Offer or Acceptance 

of Offer will ordinarily be inadmissible 

in any subsequent litigation concerning 

the alleged medical negligence, see Fed. 

R. Evid. 408, though such facts may be 

admissible in a proceeding concerning 

the enforcement of a settlement reached 

through this Pilot Program. 

III. The Early Offers Pilot Program 

A. Introduction

Under the FTCA, a person seeking 

money damages for injuries caused by 

the negligent or wrongful acts or 

omissions of a federal employee acting 

within the scope of employment must 

submit a claim to the responsible federal 

agency before filing a tort suit against 

the United States. 28 U.S.C. 2675. 

Medical malpractice claims arising out 

of the acts or omissions of HHS 

employees or deemed employees (see, 

e.g., 42 U.S.C. 233(g) and 25 U.S.C. 

450f(d)) must be submitted to HHS. 

Claims for medical negligence filed with 

HHS on or after the publication date of 

this Notice are eligible for inclusion in 

the Early Offers Pilot Program. 

The Early Offers Pilot Program is a 

voluntary alternative method for 

resolving administrative tort claims that 

have been submitted to HHS for alleged 

medical malpractice. In the event that 

the claim is not settled through the 

system described in this notice, the 

claim will be processed following the 

normal procedures used for resolving 

administrative claims filed with HHS. 

All claimants who submit 

administrative tort claims to HHS 

within the scope of this Pilot Program 

will be given detailed instructions on 

the procedures that must be followed 

and the terms and conditions of 

participation. 

Any Early Offer by a claimant or 

Acceptance of Offer by HHS must be for 

a lump-sum cash amount only. As with 

all administrative tort claim settlements, 

all Early Offers and Acceptances of 

Offer under the Early Offers Pilot 

Program will be subject to the 

settlement authority requirements and 

limitations of the Federal Tort Claims 

Act. All Early Offers and Acceptances of 

Offer will be subject to the following 

conditions: (1) The claimant must 

obtain approval of the settlement by an 

appropriate court if HHS deems such 

court approval to be necessary; (2) any 

and all persons who have an interest in 

the claim, in addition to the claimant, 

must sign a release; and (3) the standard 

Department of Justice Stipulation for 

Compromise Settlement and Release for 

cash settlements must be utilized to 

consummate the settlement. In addition, 

payment of any settlement of claims 

arising from acts or omissions of 

community health center employees 

(and certain contractors) will be subject 

to the availability of funds, as is 

currently the case for all such claims. 42 

U.S.C. 233(k). Set forth below in Part B 

is a summary of the steps and 

procedures that will be used in the Early 

Offers Pilot Program. HHS anticipates 

conducting an evaluation of the 

implementation of the Pilot Program, to 

ascertain whether the process worked as 

planned and claimants’ views of the 

Pilot Program. At the conclusion of the 

Pilot Program or the resolution of claims 

made during the Pilot Program, research 

may also be conducted on such 

questions as whether Early Offers has an 

impact on the settlement rate, timing of 

settlement, and amount of settlement. 

B. Summary of Steps and Procedures for 

Early Offers Pilot Program 

1. Submission of Administrative Tort 

Claim 

In order to be eligible for inclusion in 

the Early Offers Pilot Program, a 

claimant must first submit a timely 

administrative tort claim under the 

FTCA alleging medical negligence by an 

employee or deemed employee of the 

Department. 45 CFR Part 35, Tort 

Claims Against the Government. The 

claimant must also provide the 

documentation required by 45 CFR 35.4.

2. Notification to Claimants 

The Department will notify all such 

claimants of this Pilot Program by 

57296 Federal Register / Vol. 69, No. 185 / Friday, September 24, 2004 / Notices 

mailing to the claimant the notice 

described below and a form for use 

should the claimant decide to submit an 

Early Offer pursuant to this program. 

Provision of this notice and form to a 

claimant will not necessarily result in 

the Department’s submission to the 

Settlement Depository (SD) of an 

Acceptance of Offer with respect to the 

claim filed by the claimant. 

Pursuant to 44 U.S.C. 3518(c)(1), the 

information collected on the Early Offer 

form is not subject to the Paperwork 

Reduction Act because the collection 

takes place during the conduct of a civil 

action to which the United States or any 

official or agency is a party, or during 

the conduct of an administrative action 

involving an agency against specific 

individuals or entities. 

The notice shall provide that, among 

other things: 

(a) The Department may or may not 

submit an Acceptance of Offer agreeing 

to accept an Early Offer in a specified 

lump-sum amount to settle the claim at 

any time within 90 days of the date of 

mailing of such notice; 

(b) Any Acceptance of Offer 

submitted by the Department will be 

sent to the independent third party the 

Department has designated as the SD for 

this program; 

(c) Any Acceptance of Offer submitted 

by the Department, and any Early Offer 

submitted by the claimant, shall be 

confidential (except in the 

circumstances stated in Section 4 

below); and 

(d) At any time within the 90-day 

period after the date on which the 

Department mails the notice to the 

claimant notifying the claimant of the 

option of participating in this Pilot 

Program, the claimant may submit an 

Early Offer to the SD using the form 

provided with the notice. The Early 

Offer must specify the minimum lumpsum amount that the claimant will 

accept to settle the claim; 

(e) If the claimant has submitted an 

Early Offer and the Department has 

submitted an Acceptance of Offer 

within this 90-day period, and if the 

amount of the claimant’s Early Offer is 

less than or equal to the amount of the 

Department’s Acceptance of Offer, the 

SD shall promptly notify the claimant 

and the Department that the claim has 

been settled for the amount specified in 

the claimant’s Early Offer; and 

(f) In the event of a settlement, the 

claimant will be responsible for the 

payment of any attorney fees. However, 

any attorney fees charged to the 

claimant may not exceed 20 percent of 

the settlement amount. 28 U.S.C. 2678.

3. Settlement of Claims 

If the Department files an Acceptance 

of Offer and the claimant files an Early 

Offer with the SD within 90 days of the 

date of mailing of the notice described 

in section 2 above, and the amount of 

the claimant’s Early Offer is less than or 

equal to the amount of the Department’s 

Acceptance of Offer, the SD shall 

promptly notify the Department and the 

claimant that the claim has been settled 

in the amount indicated in the 

claimant’s Early Offer. As indicated in 

the Early Offer Form provided by the 

Department, by submitting an Early 

Offer, the claimant thereby agrees that 

any settlement shall be subject to the 

following conditions: (1) The settlement 

must be for a lump-sum cash amount 

only; (2) the settlement must be 

consummated on the standard 

Department of Justice Stipulation for 

Compromise Settlement and Release 

(‘‘Stipulation’’) for cash settlements, 

available for review by claimant through 

the SD; (3) the claimant must obtain 

approval of the settlement by an 

appropriate court if the Department 

deems such court approval to be 

necessary; and (4) any and all persons 

who have an interest in the claim, in 

addition to each claimant, must sign a 

release. The determination as to 

whether to require court approval or 

additional releases is within the sole 

discretion of the Department. The 

Department’s Acceptance of Offer will 

state whether court approval and/or 

additional releases are required and, if 

so, will specify the terms applicable to 

those requirements (e.g., the identity or 

description of persons in addition to the 

claimant who must sign a release, or the 

person or persons on whose behalf court 

approval must be obtained). By 

submitting an Early Offer, the claimant 

agrees to such conditions relating to 

court approval and additional releases 

as the Department may state in its 

Acceptance of Offer. Any Acceptance of 

Offer made by the Department in excess 

of $200,000.00 will have been approved 

by the Department of Justice prior to its 

submission to the SD. 

4. Confidentiality 

If a settlement is not reached through 

this Pilot Program, the SD shall not 

disclose to the Department or to the 

claimant, or to any other person (except 

to the extent required by federal law), 

whether or not the Department has 

submitted an Acceptance of Offer or 

whether or not the claimant has 

submitted an Early Offer. However, 

information held by the SD may be 

made available for research purposes 

after settlement of the claim or final 

disposition of any litigation with respect 

to the claim. 

5. Consummation of Settlement 

In the event the SD advises HHS and 

the claimant that a settlement has been 

reached, HHS will prepare and submit 

to the claimant or claimant’s counsel (if 

the claimant is represented by counsel) 

a Stipulation for signature by the 

claimant(s) and counsel, if any, using 

the standard Department of Justice form 

for cash settlements. The Stipulation 

may require the execution of releases by 

other persons and/or approval by a 

court, in accordance with the terms of 

the Acceptance of Offer submitted by 

the Department as stated in Section 3 

above. The Stipulation may be released 

to the public, including the amount of 

the settlement.

6. Admissibility in Subsequent 

Proceedings 

Any Early Offer or Acceptance of 

Offer shall be considered to be made 

pursuant to settlement negotiations and 

as such neither the fact that such an 

Early Offer or Acceptance of Offer was 

or was not made, nor the terms of any 

such Early Offer or Acceptance of Offer, 

will ordinarily be admissible in any 

subsequent litigation concerning the 

alleged medical malpractice. Fed. R. 

Civ. P. 408. 

7. Examples 

Three examples follow on how the 

Early Offers Pilot Program might 

function in practice:

(i) Claimant files original claim (with 

supporting documentation), as required by 45 

CFR Part 35 in the amount of $250,000. 

Claimant submits separate Early Offer to the 

SD in the amount of $50,000. Department 

reviews initial claim and background 

submitted by claimant under 45 CFR Part 35 

and submits Acceptance of Offer of $55,000 

to the SD. SD reviews the Early Offer and 

Acceptance of Offer and finds a match. The 

claim settles for $50,000. 

(ii) Claimant files original claim (with 

supporting documentation), as required by 45 

CFR Part 35 in the amount of $100,000. 

Department reviews initial claim and 

background submitted by claimant under 45 

CFR Part 35 and submits Acceptance of Offer 

of $10,000 to the SD. Claimant submits 

separate Early Offer to the SD in the amount 

of $50,000. SD reviews the Acceptance of 

Offer and Early Offer and finds no match, 

and therefore no settlement. Neither party is 

informed that the Acceptance of Offer or the 

Early Offer was submitted to the SD. 

(iii) Claimant has sustained a potentially 

life-threatening injury due to alleged medical 

negligence. Claimant is married and has two 

minor children. Claimant files original 

administrative tort claim with Department, 

but claimant’s spouse and children do not 

file administrative tort claims. Department 

reviews initial claim and background 

Federal Register / Vol. 69, No. 185 / Friday, September 24, 2004 / Notices 57297

submitted by claimant under 45 CFR Part 35 

and submits Acceptance of Offer of $300,000. 

In order to ensure that any personal injury 

settlement with claimant is binding and final 

and resolves all potential claims arising out 

of the alleged negligence, Department in its 

sole discretion determines that, in the event 

of a settlement, claimant’s spouse and 

children will be required to execute the 

standard Stipulation, thereby waiving and 

releasing all past, present, and future claims, 

including any future claims for wrongful 

death. Because the children are minors, 

Department in its sole discretion determines 

that in the event of a settlement, claimant 

will be required to obtain, at claimant’s 

expense, appropriate court approval of any 

settlement on behalf of the minor children to 

ensure that the waivers and releases by the 

children are enforceable. Department 

includes these conditions in its Acceptance 

of Offer submitted to SD. Claimant submits 

separate Early Offer of $250,000. SD finds the 

Early Offer is equal to or less than the 

Acceptance of Offer and informs claimant 

and Department that the claim has settled for 

$250,000, subject to claimant’s fulfillment of 

the conditions stated by Department in its 

Acceptance of Offer. 

(a) Claimant obtains, at claimant’s expense, 

court approval of the settlement on behalf of 

the minor children, and claimant’s spouse 

and children execute the standard 

Stipulation. The settlement becomes binding 

and final and is consummated. 

(b) Claimant informs Department that she 

cannot obtain concurrence of her spouse or 

minor children, or that she cannot obtain 

court approval on behalf of the minor 

children. Because claimant cannot satisfy 

conditions of the settlement, the settlement 

does not become binding or final. 

Department may continue to process 

claimant’s claim under Department’s 

traditional procedures, and claimant may file 

lawsuit if appropriate under 28 U.S.C. 

2675(a). The existence and terms of the 

unconsummated settlement will ordinarily 

be inadmissible in a subsequent lawsuit for 

the alleged medical negligence. See Fed. R. 

Evid. 408.

IV. Further Information 

This notice is not intended to 

constitute, and does not constitute, a 

comprehensive notice pertaining to any 

provision of the FTCA except to the 

extent that procedures governing the 

Department’s settlement of claims 

brought pursuant to the FTCA are 

described above. The decisions 

regarding whether to file an Acceptance 

of Offer, and the terms of any such 

Acceptance of Offer, are within the sole 

discretion of the United States. In 

particular, the determinations whether 

to require releases from persons in 

addition to the claimant or claimants, 

and whether to require court approval 

on behalf of any such persons, are 

within the sole discretion of the 

Department. This program gives rise to 

no cause of action, and claimants have 

no right to require the Department to 

make an Acceptance of Offer. Claimants’

rights shall be determined solely by the 

terms of any settlement reached 

hereunder and applicable law.

Dated: September 20, 2004. 

Alex M. Azar II, 

General Counsel.

[FR Doc. 04–21450 Filed 9–21–04; 11:43 am] 

BILLING CODE 4150–26–P

DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND 

HUMAN SERVICES 

Agency for Healthcare Research and 

Quality 

Agency Information Collection 

Activities: Proposed Collection; 

Comment Request

AGENCY: Agency for Healthcare Research 

and Quality, HHS.

ACTION: Notice.

SUMMARY: This notice announces the 

intention of the Agency for Healthcare 

Research and Quality (AHRQ) to request 

the Office of Management and Budget 

(OMB) to allow the proposed 

information collection project: ‘‘AHRQ–

HRSA Chemical, Biological, 

Radiological, Nuclear and Explosive 

(All Hazards) Preparedness 

Questionnaire for Healthcare Facilities 

for 2004 (CBRNE)’’. In accordance with 

the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, 

44 U.S.C. 3506(c)(2)(A), AHRQ is 

submitting to OMB a request for 

Emergency Review. 

This emergency review is requested 

because collection of this information is 

urgently needed. The information that 

will be generated by this survey is 

critical to the preparedness of the nation 

with respect to chemical, biological, 

radiological, nuclear and explosive 

hazards. 

It is crucial for national security that 

we obtain a baseline assessment of the 

level of preparedness of our hospitals 

and health care facilities in order to 

plan Government program priorities, 

and to offer current and timely 

information to the Department of Health 

and Human Services, the Congress, and 

to the President in order to inform 

policy decisions relevant to emergency 

preparedness. 

There has been extensive interest by 

Federal, State, and Local government 

offices in obtaining this information and 

frequent requests from Congress, the 

Congressional Research Service, Office 

of Management and Budget, 

Government Accounting Office, and 

Department of Homeland Security in 

order to monitor hospital(s) all hazards 

preparedness program, and the current 

level of preparedness in the nation, in 

order to plan for future all hazards 

preparedness program(s) and 

policymaking.

DATES: AHRQ is requesting that OMB 

provide a seven-day review for public 

comment period on these requirements.

ADDRESSES: Written comments for the 

proposed information collection should 

be submitted to the OMB Desk Officer 

at the following address: John Kraemer, 

Human Resources and Housing Branch, 

Office of Information and Regulatory 

Affairs, OMB: New Executive Office 

Building, Room 10235, Washington, DC. 

All comments will become a matter of 

public record.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Cynthia D. McMichael, AHRQ, Reports 

Clearance Officer, (301) 427–1651.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

Proposed Project 

‘‘Chemical, Biological, Radiological, 

Nuclear and Explosive (All Hazards) 

Preparedness Questionnaire for 

Healthcare Facilities for 2004 (CBRNE)’’

The Preparedness Questionnaire is an 

inventory of all U.S. hospitals, designed 

to measure national levels of 

preparedness for a chemical, biological, 

radiological, nuclear and explosive 

(CBRNE) event. One point of contact 

will be designated in each hospital to 

provide information on a range of topics 

that have been deemed essential by a 

panel of nationally-recognized experts 

on issues related to hospital 

preparedness for a CBRNE, i.e., an allhazards event. These topics include 

facility planning and administration; 

training and education; communication 

and notification; patient capacity; 

staffing and support; isolation and 

decontamination; supplies, 

pharmaceuticals and laboratory support; 

and surveillance. 

The inventory, which will be 

administered in 2004 and again in 2005, 

will provide national, state, and regional 

levels of preparedness by type of 

hospital, as well as estimates of bed 

capacity and emergency increase (surge) 

capacity. This information will establish 

a baseline measure of preparedness and 

readiness for a CBRNE event in 

hospitals, and will be used to assess the 

current national level of preparedness. 

It will also be useful for national 

planning, program planning, setting 

priority areas in addressing current and 

future needs, as well as ensuring that 

scarce resources are being used in a way 

that achieves the most impact in 

preparedness. Future studies will be 

conducted to assess advances in 

preparedness levels.