57046 Federal Register / Vol. 76, No. 179 / Thursday, September 15, 2011 / Notices 

promulgated by Office of the National 

Coordinator for Health Information 

Technology; 

(2) Shall have complied with all the 

requirements under this section; 

(3) In the case of a private entity, shall 

be incorporated in and maintain a 

primary place of business in the United 

States, and in the case of an individual, 

whether participating singly or in a 

group, shall be a citizen or permanent 

resident of the United States; and 

(4) May not be a Federal entity or 

Federal employee acting within the 

scope of their employment. 

An individual or entity shall not be 

deemed ineligible because the 

individual or entity used Federal 

facilities or consulted with Federal 

employees during a competition if the 

facilities and employees are made 

available to all individuals and entities 

participating in the competition on an 

equitable basis. 

Registered participants shall be 

required to agree to assume any and all 

risks and waive claims against the 

Federal Government and its related 

entities, except in the case of willful 

misconduct, for any injury, death, 

damage, or loss of property, revenue, or 

profits, whether direct, indirect, or 

consequential, arising from their 

participation in a competition, whether 

the injury, death, damage, or loss arises 

through negligence or otherwise. 

Participants shall be required to 

obtain liability insurance or 

demonstrate financial responsibility, in 

amounts determined by the head of the 

Office of the National Coordinator for 

Health Information Technology, for 

claims by— 

(1) A third party for death, bodily 

injury, or property damage, or loss 

resulting from an activity carried out in 

connection with participation in a 

competition, with the Federal 

Government named as an additional 

insured under the registered 

participant’s insurance policy and 

registered participants agreeing to 

indemnify the Federal Government 

against third party claims for damages 

arising from or related to competition 

activities; and 

(2) the Federal Government for 

damage or loss to Government property 

resulting from such an activity. 

Participants must be teams of at least 

two people. 

All participants are required to 

provide written consent to the rules 

upon or before submitting an entry. 

Dates: 

• Submission Period Begins: 12:01 

a.m., E.D.T., September 12, 2011. 

• Submission Period Ends: 11:59 

p.m., E.D.T., December 2, 2011. 

Registration Process for Participants: 

To register for this challenge 

participants should: 

• Access the http:// 

www.challenge.gov Web site and search 

for the ‘‘Reporting Device Adverse 

Events Challenge’’. 

• Access the ONC Investing in 

Innovation (i2) Challenge Web site at: 

Æ http://www.health2challenge.org/ 

category/onc/. 

Æ A registration link for the challenge 

can be found on the landing page under 

the challenge description. 

Amount of the Prize: 

• First Prize: $25,000. 

• Second Prize: $10,000. 

• Third Prize: $5,000. 

Awards may be subject to Federal 

income taxes and HHS will comply with 

IRS withholding and reporting 

requirements, where applicable. 

Basis Upon Which Winner Will Be 

Selected: 

The judging panel will make 

selections based upon the following 

criteria: 

1. Effectiveness in facilitating adverse 

event reporting. 

2. Usability and design. 

3. Ability to integrate with electronic 

health records and other data sources. 

4. Creativity and Innovation. 

5. Use of NwHIN standards and 

services. 

Additional Information: 

Ownership of intellectual property is 

determined by the following: 

• Each entrant retains title and full 

ownership in and to their submission. 

Entrants expressly reserve all 

intellectual property rights not 

expressly granted under the challenge 

agreement. 

• By participating in the challenge, 

each entrant hereby irrevocably grants 

to Sponsor and Administrator a limited, 

non-exclusive, royalty free, worldwide, 

license and right to reproduce, 

publically perform, publically display, 

and use the Submission to the extent 

necessary to administer the challenge, 

and to publically perform and 

publically display the Submission, 

including, without limitation, for 

advertising and promotional purposes 

relating to the challenge. 

Dated: September 8, 2011. 

Farzad Mostashari, 

National Coordinator for Health Information 

Technology. 

[FR Doc. 2011–23702 Filed 9–14–11; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 4150–45–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: ‘‘Health 

Literacy Item Set Supplemental to 

CAHPS Health Plan Survey—Pretest of 

Proposed Questions and Methodology.’’ 

In accordance with the Paperwork 

Reduction Act, 44 U.S.C. 3501–3521, 

AHRQ invites the public to comment on 

this proposed information collection. 

This proposed information collection 

was previously published in the Federal 

Register on July 7th, 2011 and allowed 

60 days for public comment. No 

comments were received. The purpose 

of this notice is to allow an additional 

30 days for public comment. 

DATES: Comments on this notice must be 

received by October 17, 2011. 

ADDRESSES: Written comments should 

be submitted to: AHRQ’s OMB Desk 

Officer by fax at (202) 395–6974 

(attention: AHRQ’s desk officer) or by email at OIRA_submission@omb.eop.gov 

(attention: AHRQ’s desk officer). 

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 

e-mail at 

doris.lefkowitz@AHRQ.hhs.gov. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

Proposed Project 

Health Literacy Item Set Supplemental 

to CAHPS Health Plan Survey—Pretest 

of Proposed Questions and Methodology 

The Consumer Assessment of 

Healthcare Providers and Systems 

(CAHPS®) program is a multi-year 

initiative. AHRQ first launched the 

program in October 1995 in response to 

concerns about the lack of good 

information about the quality of health 

plans from the enrollees’ perspective. 

Numerous public and private 

organizations collected information on 


wreier-aviles on DSKGBLS3C1PROD with NOTICES
Federal Register / Vol. 76, No. 179 / Thursday, September 15, 2011 / Notices 57047 

enrollee and patient satisfaction, but the 

surveys varied from sponsor to sponsor 

and often changed from year to year. 

The CAHPS® program was designed to: 

• Make it possible to compare survey 

results across sponsors and over time; 

and 

• Generate tools and resources that 

sponsors can use to produce 

understandable and usable comparative 

information for consumers, health 

providers and for quality improvement 

purposes. 

Over time, the program has expanded 

beyond its original focus on health 

plans to address a range of health care 

services and to meet the various needs 

of health care consumers, purchasers, 

health plans, providers, and 

policymakers. Based on a literature 

review and an assessment of currently 

available questionnaires, AHRQ 

identified the need to develop a health 

literacy module for the CAHPS® Health 

Plan Survey. The intent of the health 

literacy module is to examine health 

plan enrollees’ perspectives on how 

well health information is 

communicated to them by health plans 

and by healthcare professionals in the 

health plan setting. The objective of the 

new module is to provide information to 

health plans, clinicians, group practices, 

and other interested parties regarding 

the quality of health information 

delivered to patients. The health literacy 

module will be pre-tested as a 

supplement to the CAHPS® Health Plan 

Survey. 

This pre-test has the following goals: 

(1) Analysis of item wording—Assess 

candidate wordings for items. 

(2) Analysis of participation rate— 

Evaluate the overall response rate and 

the proportion of that obtained from 

mail versus telephone modes of data 

collection. 

(3) Case mix adjustment analysis— 

Evaluate variables that need to be 

considered for case mix adjustment of 

scores. 

(4) Psychometric Analysis—Provide 

information for the revision of the 

health literacy item set based on the 

assessment of the reliability and 

validity. 

(5) Dissemination of the CAHPS 

Health Plan Health Literacy 

supplemental item set. 

This study is being conducted by 

AHRQ through its contractor, the RAND 

Corporation, pursuant to AHRQ’s 

statutory authority to conduct research 

and evaluations on health care and 

systems for the delivery of such care, 

including activities with respect to the 

quality, effectiveness, efficiency, 

appropriateness and value of health care 

services. See 42 U.S.C. 299a(a)(1). 

Method of Collection 

To achieve the goals of this pre-test 

the CAHPS Health Plan Health Literacy 

Survey will be implemented with a 

sample of persons from the surveys’ 

target population, consumers of health 

care services offered by health plans. 

The data from this pre-test will be used 

to refine the health literacy module 

questions and will ensure that the future 

data collection yield high quality data 

and ensure a minimization of 

respondent burden, increase agency 

efficiency, and improve responsiveness 

to the public. The survey items will be 

added to currently available CAHPS 

surveys and will enhance the ability of 

health plans and health professionals 

working in a health plan primary care 

setting to assess the quality of their 

services. 

Estimated Annual Respondent Burden 

Exhibit 1 shows the estimated 

annualized burden for the respondents’ 

time to participate in this data 

collection. About 1000 persons will 

complete the CAHPS Health Plan 

Survey Health Literacy Module. The 

estimated response time of 25 minutes 

is based on the written length of the 

survey and AHRQ’s experience with 

previous CAHPS® surveys of 

comparable length that were fielded 

with similar samples. The total burden 

hours are estimated to be 417 hours. 

Exhibit 2 shows the respondents’ cost 

burden associated with their time to 

participate in this data collection. The 

total cost burden is estimated to be 

$8,715. 

EXHIBIT 1—ESTIMATED ANNUALIZED BURDEN HOURS

Form name Number of 

respondents 

Number of 

responses per 

respondent 

Hours per 

response 

Total burden 

hours 

CAHPS Health Plan Health Literacy Module .................................................. 1000 1 25/60 417 

Total .......................................................................................................... 1000 1 na 417 

EXHIBIT 2—ESTIMATED ANNUALIZED COST BURDEN

Form name Number of 

respondents 

Total burden 

hours 

Average hourly wage rate* Total cost 

burden 

CAHPS Health Plan Health Literacy Survey ................................................... 1000 417 $20.90 $8,715 

Total .......................................................................................................... 1000 417 na 8,715 

*Based upon the average wages, ‘‘National Compensation Survey: Occupational Wages in the United States, May 2009,’’ U.S. Department of 

Labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics. 

Estimated Annual Costs to the Federal 

Government 

Exhibit 3 shows the total and 

annualized cost to conduct this 

research. The total cost for this project 

is approximately $299,000. Since the 

data collection period is less than one 

year, the total and annualized costs are 

identical. 


wreier-aviles on DSKGBLS3C1PROD with NOTICES
57048 Federal Register / Vol. 76, No. 179 / Thursday, September 15, 2011 / Notices 

EXHIBIT 3—ESTIMATED ANNUALIZED COST

Cost component Total cost Annualized 

cost 

Review of literature .................................................................................................................................................. $20,000 $20,000 

Cognitive interviews ................................................................................................................................................. 60,000 60,000 

Field test .................................................................................................................................................................. 90,000 90,000 

Data analyses .......................................................................................................................................................... 40,000 40,000 

Finalize survey ......................................................................................................................................................... 39,000 39,000 

AHRQ project management .................................................................................................................................... 50,000 50,000 

Total .................................................................................................................................................................. 299,000 299,000 

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 healthcare 

research and healthcare 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: Aug 31 2011. 

Carolyn M. Clancy, 

Director. 

[FR Doc. 2011–23543 Filed 9–14–11; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 4160–90–M 

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: ‘‘Medical 

Expenditure Panel Survey—Insurance 

Component 2012–2013.’’ In accordance 

with the Paperwork Reduction Act, 44 

U.S.C. 3501–3521, AHRQ invites the 

public to comment on this proposed 

information collection. 

This proposed information collection 

was previously published in the Federal 

Register on June 30th, 2011 and allowed 

60 days for public comment. No 

comments were received. The purpose 

of this notice is to allow an additional 

30 days for public comment. 

DATES: Comments on this notice must be 

received by October 17, 2011. 

ADDRESSES: Written comments should 

be submitted to: AHRQ’s OMB Desk 

Officer by fax at (202) 395–6974 

(attention: AHRQ’s desk officer) or by email at OIRA_submission@omb.eop.gov 

(attention: AHRQ’s desk officer). 

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 

e-mail at 

doris.lefkowitz@AHRQ.hhs.gov. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

Proposed Project 

Medical Expenditure Panel Survey— 

Insurance Component 2012–2013 

Employer-sponsored health insurance 

is the source of coverage for 85 million 

current and former workers, plus many 

of their family members, and is a 

cornerstone of the U.S. health care 

system. The Medical Expenditure Panel 

Survey—Insurance Component (MEPS– 

IC) measures the extent, cost, and 

coverage of employer-sponsored health 

insurance on an annual basis. These 

statistics are produced at the National, 

State, and sub-State (metropolitan area) 

level for private industry. Statistics are 

also produced for State and Local 

governments. 

This research has the following goals: 

(1) To provide data for Federal 

policymakers evaluating the effects of 

National and State health care reforms; 

(2) to provide descriptive data on the 

current employer-sponsored health 

insurance system and data for modeling 

the differential impacts of proposed 

health policy initiatives; and 

(3) to supply critical State and 

National estimates of health insurance 

spending for the National Health 

Accounts and Gross Domestic Product. 

This study is being conducted by 

AHRQ through an interagency 

agreement with the U.S. Census Bureau 

and pursuant to AHRQ’s statutory 

authority to conduct surveys to collect 

data on the cost, use and quality of 

health care, including the types and 

costs of private health insurance. 42 

U.S.C. 299b–2(a). 

Method of Collection 

To achieve the goals of this project the 

following data collections for both 

private sector and state and local 

government employers will be 

implemented: 

(1) Prescreener Questionnaire—The 

purpose of the Prescreener 

Questionnaire, which is collected via 

telephone, varies depending on the 

insurance status of the establishment 

contacted. (Establishment is defined as 

a single, physical location in the private 

sector and a governmental unit in state 

and local governments.) For 

establishments that do not offer health 

insurance to their employees, the 

prescreener is used to collect basic 

information such as number of 

employees. Collection is completed for 

these establishments through this 

telephone call. For establishments that 

do offer health insurance, contact name 

and address information is collected 

that is used for the mailout of the 

establishment and plan questionnaires. 

Obtaining this contact information helps 

ensure that the questionnaires are 

directed to the person in the 

establishment best equipped to 

complete them. 


wreier-aviles on DSKGBLS3C1PROD with NOTICES