49518 Federal Register / Vol. 78, No. 157 / Wednesday, August 14, 2013 / Notices 

EXHIBIT 2—ESTIMATED ANNUALIZED COST BURDEN—Continued 

Form name Number of 

respondents 

Total burden 

hours 

Average 

hourly wage 

rate * 

Total cost 

burden 

Total .......................................................................................................... 1,200 300 n/a 25,578 

* Based upon the higher of the two means of the hourly wages for general and family practitioners and general pediatricians, National Compensation Survey: ‘‘May 2011 National Occupational Employment and Wage Estimates, United States.’’ U.S. Department of Labor, Bureau of 

Labor Statistics. 

Request for Comments 

In accordance with the Paperwork 

Reduction Act, comments on AHRQ’s 

information collection are requested 

with regard to any of the following: (a) 

Whether the proposed collection of 

information is necessary for the proper 

performance of AHRQ health care 

research and health care information 

dissemination functions, including 

whether the information will have 

practical utility; (b) the accuracy of 

AHRQ’s estimate of burden (including 

hours and costs) of the proposed 

collection(s) of information; (c) ways to 

enhance the quality, utility, and clarity 

of the information to be collected; and 

(d) ways to minimize the burden of the 

collection of information upon the 

respondents, including the use of 

automated collection techniques or 

other forms of information technology. 

Comments submitted in response to 

this notice will be summarized and 

included in the Agency’s subsequent 

request for OMB approval of the 

proposed information collection. All 

comments will become a matter of 

public record. 

Dated: August 2, 2013. 

Carolyn M. Clancy, 

AHRQ Director. 

[FR Doc. 2013–19724 Filed 8–13–13; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 4160–90–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 

that the Office of Management and 

Budget (OMB) approve the proposed 

information collection project: 

‘‘Collection of Information for Agency 

for Healthcare Research and Quality’s 

(AHRQ) Consumer Assessment of 

Healthcare Providers and Systems 

(CAHPS) Health Plan Survey 

Comparative Database.’’ In accordance 

with the Paperwork Reduction Act, 44 

U.S.C. 3501–3521, AHRQ invites the 

public to comment on this proposed 

information collection. 

DATES: Comments on this notice must be 

received by October 15, 2013. 

ADDRESSES: Written comments should 

be submitted to: Doris Lefkowitz, 

Reports Clearance Officer, AHRQ, by 

email at doris.lefkowitz@AHRQ.hhs.gov. 

Copies of the proposed collection 

plans, data collection instruments, and 

specific details on the estimated burden 

can be obtained from the AHRQ Reports 

Clearance Officer. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Doris Lefkowitz, AHRQ Reports 

Clearance Officer, (301) 427–1477, or by 

email at doris.lefkowitz@AHRQ.hhs.gov. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

Proposed Project 

Collection of Information for Agency for 

Healthcare Research and Quality’s 

(AHRQ) Consumer Assessment of 

Healthcare Providers and Systems 

(CAHPS) Health Plan Survey 

Comparative Database 

Request for information collection 

approval. The Agency for Healthcare 

Research and Quality (AHRQ) requests 

that the Office of Management and 

Budget (OMB) reapprove, under the 

Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, 

AHRQ’s collection of information for 

the AHRQ Consumer Assessment of 

Healthcare Providers and Systems 

(CAHPS) Database for Health Plans: 

OMB Control number 0935–0165, 

expiration July 31, 2013. The CAHPS 

Health Plan Database consists of data 

from the AHRQ CAHPS Health Plan 

Survey. Health plans in the U.S. are 

asked to voluntarily submit data from 

the survey to AHRQ, through its 

contractor, Westat. The CAHPS 

Database was developed by AHRQ in 

1998 in response to requests from health 

plans, purchasers, and the Centers for 

Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) to 

provide comparative data to support 

public reporting of health plan ratings, 

health plan accreditation and quality 

improvement. 

Background on the CAHPS Health 

Plan Survey. The CAHPS Health Plan 

Survey is a tool for collecting 

standardized information on enrollees’ 

experiences with health plans and their 

services. The development of the 

CAHPS Health Plan Survey began in 

1995, when AHRQ awarded the first set 

of CAHPS grants to Harvard, RTI, and 

RAND. In 1997 the CAHPS 1.0 survey 

was released by the CAHPS Consortium. 

The CAHPS Consortium refers to the 

research organizations involved in the 

development, dissemination, and 

support of CAHPS products. The 

current Consortium includes AHRQ, 

CMS, RAND, Yale School of Public 

Health, and Westat. 

Since that time, the Consortium has 

clarified and updated the survey 

instrument to reflect field test results; 

feedback from industry experts; reports 

from health plan participants, data 

collection vendors, and other users; and 

evidence from cognitive testing and 

focus groups. In November 2006, the 

CAHPS Consortium released the latest 

version of the instrument: the CAHPS 

Health Plan Survey 4.0. The 

development of this update to the 

Health Plan Survey has been part of the 

‘‘Ambulatory CAHPS (A–CAHPS) 

Initiative,’’ which arose as a result of 

extensive research conducted with 

users. AHRQ released the CAHPS 

Health Plan Survey 4.0, along with 

guidance on how to customize and 

administer it. The National Quality 

Forum endorsed the 4.0 version of the 

Health Plan Survey in July 2007. 

Rationale for the information 

collection. The CAHPS Health Plan 

Database uses data from AHRQ’s 

standardized CAHPS Health plan survey 

to provide comparative results to health 

care purchasers, consumers, regulators 

and policy makers across the country. 

The Database also provides data for 

AHRQ’s annual National Healthcare 

Quality and National Healthcare 

Disparities Reports. Voluntary 

participants include public and private 

employers, State Medicaid agencies, 

State Children’s Health Insurance 


tkelley on DSK3SPTVN1PROD with NOTICES
Federal Register / Vol. 78, No. 157 / Wednesday, August 14, 2013 / Notices 49519 

Programs (SCHIP), the Centers for 

Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS), 

and individual health plans. 

This study is being conducted by 

AHRQ through its contractor, Westat, 

pursuant to AHRQ’s statutory authority 

to conduct and support research on 

healthcare and on systems for the 

delivery of such care, including 

activities with respect to: The quality, 

effectiveness, efficiency, 

appropriateness and value of healthcare 

services; quality measurement and 

improvement; and database 

development. 42 U.S.C. 299a(a)(1), (2), 

and (a)(8). 

Method of Collection 

Each year State Medicaid agencies, 

and individual health plans decide 

whether to participate in the database 

and prepare their materials and dataset 

for submission to the CAHPS Health 

Plan Database. Participating 

organizations are typically State 

Medicaid agencies with multiple health 

plans. However, individual health plans 

are also encouraged to submit their data 

to the CAHPS Database. The number of 

data submissions per registrant varies 

from participant to participant and year 

to year because some participants 

submit data for multiple health plans, 

while others may only submit survey 

data for one plan. 

Each organization that decides to 

participate in the database must have 

their point-of-contact (POC) complete a 

registration form providing their contact 

information for access to the on-line 

data submission system, sign and 

submit a DUA, and provide health plan 

characteristics such as health plan 

name, product type, type of population 

surveyed, health plan state, and plan 

name to appear in the reporting of their 

results. 

Each vendor that submits files on 

behalf of a Medicaid agency or 

individual health plan must also 

complete the registration form in order 

to obtain access to the on-line 

submission system. The vendor, on 

behalf of their client, may also complete 

additional information about survey 

administration (CAHPS survey version 

used, mode of survey administration, 

total enrollment count, description of 

how the sample was selected), submit a 

copy of the questionnaire used, and 

submit one data file per health plan. 

Commercial health plan data is received 

directly from NCQA. Medicare health 

plan data is received from CMS. 

Survey data from the CAHPS Health 

Plan Database is used to produce four 

types of products: (1) An annual 

chartbook available to the public on the 

CAHPS Database Web site (https:// 

www.cahpsdatabase.ahrq.gov/ 

CAHPSIDB/Public/Chartbook.aspx); (2) 

individual participant comparative 

reports that are confidential and 

customized for each participating 

organization (e.g., health plan, Medicaid 

agency) that submits their data; (3) a 

research database available to 

researchers wanting to conduct 

additional analyses; and (4) data tables 

provided to AHRQ for inclusion in the 

National Healthcare Quality and 

National Healthcare Disparities Reports. 

Estimated Annual Respondent Burden 

Exhibit 1 shows the estimated burden 

hours for the respondent to participate 

in the database. The burden hours 

pertain only to the collection of 

Medicaid data from State Medicaid 

agencies and individual Medicaid 

health plans because those are the only 

entities that submit data through the 

data submission process (other data are 

obtained directly from NCQA and CMS 

as noted earlier in Section 2). The 80 

POCs in exhibit 1 are a combination of 

an estimated 60 State Medicaid agencies 

and individual health plans, and 20 

estimated vendors. 

Each State Medicaid agency, health 

plan or vendor will register online for 

submission. The online Registration 

form will require about 5 minutes to 

complete. Each submitter will also 

complete a Health Plan information 

form of information about each Health 

Plan such as the name of the plan, the 

product type (e.g., HMO, PPO), the 

population surveyed (e.g., adult 

Medicaid or child Medicaid), the health 

plan State, total enrollment at the time 

the sample frame was generated, mode 

of survey administration (mail, 

telephone, IVR) and how the sample 

was selected. The online Health Plan 

Information form takes on average 30 

minutes to complete per health plan 

with each POC completing the form for 

4 plans on average. The data use 

agreement will be completed by the 60 

participating State Medicaid agencies or 

individual health plans. Vendors do not 

sign or submit DUAs. The DUA requires 

about 3 minutes to sign and return by 

fax or mail. Each submitter will provide 

a copy of their questionnaire and the 

survey data file in the required file 

format. Survey data files must conform 

to the data file layout specifications 

provide by the CAHPS Database. Since 

the unit of analysis is at the health plan 

level, submitters will upload one data 

file per health plan. Once a data file is 

uploaded the file will be automatically 

checked to ensure it conforms to the 

specifications and a data file status 

report will be produced and made 

available to the submitter. Submitters 

will review each report and will be 

expected to fix any errors in their data 

file and resubmit if necessary. It will 

take about one hour to submit the data 

for each plan, and each POC will submit 

data for 4 plans on average. The total 

burden is estimated to be 490 hours 

annually. 

Exhibit 2 shows the estimated 

annualized cost burden based on the 

respondents’ time to complete one 

submission process. The cost burden is 

estimated to be $20,202 annually. 

EXHIBIT 1—ESTIMATED ANNUALIZED BURDEN HOURS

Form name 

Number of 

respondents/ 

POCs 

Number of 

responses 

per POC 

Hours per 

response 

Total burden 

hours 

Registration Form ............................................................................................ 80 1 5/60 7 

Health Plan Information Form ......................................................................... 80 4 30/60 160 

Data Use Agreement ....................................................................................... 60 1 3/60 3 

Data Files Submission ..................................................................................... 80 4 1 320 

Total .......................................................................................................... 300 NA NA 490 


tkelley on DSK3SPTVN1PROD with NOTICES
49520 Federal Register / Vol. 78, No. 157 / Wednesday, August 14, 2013 / Notices 

EXHIBIT 2—ESTIMATED ANNUALIZED COST BURDEN

Form name 

Number of 

respondents/ 

POCs 

Total burden 

hours 

Average 

hourly wage 

rate *

Total cost 

burden 

Registration Form ............................................................................................ 80 7 a 47.34 $331 

Health Plan Information Form ......................................................................... 80 160 a 47.34 7,574 

Data Use Agreement ....................................................................................... 60 3 b 85.02 255 

Data Files Submission ..................................................................................... 80 320 c 37.63 12,042 

Total .......................................................................................................... 300 490 NA 20,202 

* National Compensation Survey: Occupational wages in the United States May 2012, ‘‘U.S. Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics.’’ a Based on the mean hourly wage for Medical and Health Services Managers (11–9111). b Based on the mean hourly wage for Chief Executives (11–1011). c Based on the mean hourly wages for Computer Programmer (15–1131). 

Request for Comments 

In accordance with the Paperwork 

Reduction Act, comments on AHRQ’s 

information collection are requested 

with regard to any of the following: (a) 

Whether the proposed collection of 

information is necessary for the proper 

performance of AHRQ health care 

research and health care information 

dissemination functions, including 

whether the information will have 

practical utility; (b) the accuracy of 

AHRQ’s estimate of burden (including 

hours and costs) of the proposed 

collection(s) of information; (c) ways to 

enhance the quality, utility, and clarity 

of the information to be collected; and 

(d) ways to minimize the burden of the 

collection of information upon the 

respondents, including the use of 

automated collection techniques or 

other forms of information technology. 

Comments submitted in response to 

this notice will be summarized and 

included in the Agency’s subsequent 

request for OMB approval of the 

proposed information collection. All 

comments will become a matter of 

public record. 

Dated: August 8, 2013. 

Carolyn M. Clancy, 

AHRQ Director. 

[FR Doc. 2013–19712 Filed 8–13–13; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 4160–90–P 

DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND 

HUMAN SERVICES 

Agency for Healthcare Research and 

Quality 

Scientific Information Request on 

Imaging Techniques for the 

Surveillance, Diagnosis, and Staging 

of Hepatocellular Carcinoma 

AGENCY: Agency for Healthcare Research 

and Quality (AHRQ), HHS. 

ACTION: Request for scientific 

information submissions. 

SUMMARY: The Agency for Healthcare 

Research and Quality (AHRQ) is seeking 

scientific information submissions from 

the public on imaging techniques for the 

surveillance, diagnosis, and staging of 

hepatocellular carcinoma. Scientific 

information is being solicited to inform 

our review of Imaging Techniques for 

the Surveillance, Diagnosis, and Staging 

of Hepatocellular Carcinoma, which is 

currently being conducted by the 

Evidence-based Practice Centers for the 

AHRQ Effective Health Care Program. 

Access to published and unpublished 

pertinent scientific information on 

imaging techniques for the surveillance, 

diagnosis, and staging of hepatocellular 

carcinoma will improve the quality of 

this review. AHRQ is conducting this 

comparative effectiveness review 

pursuant to Section 1013 of the 

Medicare Prescription Drug, 

Improvement, and Modernization Act of 

2003, Public Law 108–173, and Section 

902(a) of the Public Health Service Act, 

42 U.S.C. 299a(a). 

DATES: Submission Deadline on or 

before September 13, 2013. 

ADDRESSES: 

Online submissions: http:// 

effectivehealthcare.AHRQ.gov/ 

index.cfm/submit-scientificinformation-packets/. Please select the 

study for which you are submitting 

information from the list to upload your 

documents. 

Email submissions: SIPS@epc-src.org. 

Print submissions: 

Mailing Address: Portland VA Research 

Foundation, Scientific Resource 

Center, ATTN: Scientific Information 

Packet Coordinator, PO Box 69539, 

Portland, OR 97239. 

Shipping Address (FedEx, UPS, etc.): 

Portland VA Research Foundation, 

Scientific Resource Center, ATTN: 

Scientific Information Packet 

Coordinator, 3710 SW U.S. Veterans 

Hospital Road, Mail Code: R&D 71, 

Portland, OR 97239. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Robin Paynter, Research Librarian, 

Telephone: 503–220–8262 ext. 58652 or 

Email: SIPS@epc-src.org. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The 

Agency for Healthcare Research and 

Quality has commissioned the Effective 

Health Care (EHC) Program Evidencebased Practice Centers to complete a 

review of the evidence for Imaging 

Techniques for the Surveillance, 

Diagnosis, and Staging of 

Hepatocellular Carcinoma. 

The EHC Program is dedicated to 

identifying as many studies as possible 

that are relevant to the questions for 

each of its reviews. In order to do so, we 

are supplementing the usual manual 

and electronic database searches of the 

literature by requesting information 

from the public (e.g., details of studies 

conducted). We are looking for studies 

that report on imaging techniques for 

the surveillance, diagnosis, and staging 

of hepatocellular carcinoma, including 

those that describe adverse events. The 

entire research protocol, including the 

key questions, is also available online 

at: http://www.effectivehealthcare.

AHRQ.gov/search-for-guides-reviewsand-reports/?pageaction

=displayproduct&productID=1600#7839 

This notice is to notify the public that 

the EHC program would find the 

following information on imaging 

techniques for the surveillance, 

diagnosis, and staging of hepatocellular 

carcinoma helpful: 

D A list of completed studies your 

company has sponsored for this 

indication. In the list, indicate whether 

results are available on 

ClinicalTrials.gov along with the 

ClinicalTrials.gov trial number. 

D For completed studies that do not 

have results on ClinicalTrials.gov, a 

summary, including the following 

elements: study number, study period, 

design, methodology, indication and 

diagnosis, proper use instructions, 

inclusion and exclusion criteria, 

primary and secondary outcomes, 

baseline characteristics, number of 

patients screened/eligible/enrolled/lost 


tkelley on DSK3SPTVN1PROD with NOTICES