[Federal Register Volume 72, Number 71 (Friday, April 13, 2007)]
[Notices]
[Page 18662]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E7-6992]


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DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES

Health Resources and Services Administration


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

    Periodically, the Health Resources and Services Administration 
(HRSA) publishes abstracts of information collection requests under 
review by the Office of Management and Budget (OMB), in compliance with 
the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (44 U.S.C. Chapter 35). To request 
a copy of the clearance requests submitted to OMB for review, call the 
HRSA Reports Clearance Office on (301) 443-1129.
    The following request has been submitted to OMB for review under 
the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995:

Proposed Project: The Health Education Assistance Loan Program: 
Physician's Certification of Borrower's Total and Permanent Disability 
Form (OMB No. 0915-0204 Extension)

    The Health Education Assistance Loan (HEAL) program provided 
federally-insured loans to students in schools of allopathic medicine, 
osteopathic medicine, dentistry, veterinary medicine, optometry, 
podiatric medicine, pharmacy, public health, allied health or 
chiropractic, and graduate students in health administration or 
clinical psychology through September 30, 1998. Eligible lenders, such 
as banks, savings and loan associations, credit unions, pension funds, 
State agencies, HEAL schools, and insurance companies, were permitted 
to refinance HEAL loans which were insured by the Federal Government 
against loss due to borrower's death, disability, bankruptcy, and 
default until the authority to refinance HEAL loans expired on 
September 30, 2004. The basic purpose of the program was to assure the 
availability of funds for loans to eligible students who needed to 
borrow money to pay for their educational loans. Currently, the program 
monitors the Federal liability and assists in default prevention 
activities. The HEAL borrower, the borrower's physician, and the holder 
of the loan completes the Physician's Certification form to certify 
that the HEAL borrower meets the total and permanent disability 
provisions.
    The Department uses this form to obtain detailed information about 
disability claims which includes the following: (1) The borrower's 
consent to release medical records to the Department of Health and 
Human Services and to the holder of the borrower's HEAL loans, (2) 
pertinent information supplied by the certifying physician, (3) the 
Physician's Certification that the borrower is unable to engage in any 
substantial gainful activity because of a medically determined 
impairment that is expected to continue for a long and indefinite 
period of time or to result in death, and (4) information from the 
lender on the unpaid balance. Failure to submit the required 
documentation will result in disapproval of a disability claim.
    The estimate of burden for the Physician's Certification form is as 
follows:

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                                     Number of     Responses per     Number of      Minutes per    Total burden
       Type of respondent           respondents     respondent       responses       response          hours
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Borrower........................              80               1              80               5               7
Physician.......................              80               1              80              30              40
Loan Holder.....................              17               5              85              10              14
    Total.......................             177  ..............             245  ..............              61
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    Written comments and recommendations concerning the proposed 
information collection should be sent within 30 days of this notice to: 
Karen Matsuoka, Health Resources and Services Administration, Human 
Resources and Housing Branch, OMB, New Executive Office Building, Room 
10235, Washington, DC 20503.

    Dated: April 6, 2007.
Caroline Lewis,
Acting Associate Administrator for Administration and Financial 
Management.
 [FR Doc. E7-6992 Filed 4-12-07; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4165-15-P