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[Federal Register Volume 77, Number 142 (Tuesday, July 24, 2012)]
[Notices]
[Pages 43289-43290]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2012-17926]

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DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES

Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services

[Document Identifier: CMS-10305]

Agency Information Collection Activities: Proposed Collection; 
Comment Request

AGENCY: Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, HHS.

    In compliance with the requirement of section 3506(c)(2)(A) of the 
Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid 
Services (CMS) is publishing the following summary of proposed 
collections for public comment. Interested persons are invited to send 
comments regarding this burden estimate or any other aspect of this 
collection of information, including any of the following subjects: (1) 
The necessity and utility of the proposed information collection for 
the proper performance of the agency's functions; (2) the accuracy of 
the estimated burden; (3) ways to enhance the quality, utility, and 
clarity of the information to be collected; and (4) the use of 
automated collection techniques or other forms of information 
technology to minimize the information collection burden.
    1. Type of Information Collection Request: Revision of a currently 
approved collection; Title: Medicare Part C and Part D Data Validation 
(42 CFR 422.516g and 423.514g); Use: The Centers for Medicare and 
Medicaid Services (CMS) established reporting requirements for Medicare 
Part C and Part D sponsoring organizations (Medicare Advantage 
Organizations [MAOs], Cost Plans, and Medicare Part D sponsors) under 
the authority described in 42 CFR 422.516(a) and 423.514(a), 
respectively. Under these reporting requirements, each sponsoring 
organization must submit Medicare Part C, Medicare Part D, or Medicare 
Part C and Part D data (depending on the type of contracts they have in 
place with CMS). In order for the reported data to be useful for 
monitoring and performance measurement, it must be reliable, valid, 
complete, and comparable among sponsoring organizations. In 2009, CMS 
developed the data validation program as a mechanism to verify the data 
reported are accurate, valid, and reliable. To maintain the 
independence of the validation process, sponsoring organizations do not 
use their own staff to conduct the data validation. Instead, sponsoring 
organizations are responsible for hiring external, independent data 
validation contractors (DVCs) who meet a minimum set of qualifications 
and credentials.
    CMS developed standards and data validation criteria for specific 
Medicare Part C and Part D reporting requirements that the DVCs use in 
validating the sponsoring organizations' data.\1\ These standards and 
criteria are described in Appendix 1 ``Data Validation Standards.'' The 
data validation standards for each measure include standard 
instructions relating to the types of information that should be 
reviewed, and measure-specific criteria (MSC) that are aligned with the 
``Medicare Part C and Part D Reporting Requirement Technical 
Specifications.'' Furthermore, the standards and criteria describe how 
the DVCs should validate the sponsoring organizations' compilations of 
reported data, taking into account appropriate data exclusions, and 
verifying calculations, source code, and algorithms. The data 
validation reviews are conducted at the contract level given that the 
Medicare Part C and Part D data are generally available at the contract 
level and the contract is the basis of any legal and accountability 
issues concerning the rendering of services.
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    \1\ CMS determines annually which Medicare Part C and Part D 
measures are included in the data validation program.
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    The review is conducted over a three-month period following the 
final submission of data by the sponsoring organizations. In addition 
to the ''Data Validation Standards'' described in Appendix 1, the DVCs 
employ a set of information collection tools when performing their 
reviews, which are included in the appendices described below:

Appendix 2: Organizational Assessment Instrument
Appendix 3: Data Extraction and Sampling Instructions
Appendix 4: Instructions for the Findings Data Collection Form
Appendix 5: Findings Data Collection Form (FDCF)

    Data collected via ``Medicare Part C and Part D Reporting 
Requirements'' is an integral resource for oversight, monitoring, 
compliance and auditing activities necessary to ensure quality 
provision of the Medicare benefits to beneficiaries. CMS uses the data 
collected through the Medicare data validation program to substantiate 
the data collected via Medicare Part C and Part D Reporting 
Requirements. If CMS detects data anomalies, the CMS division with 
primary responsibility for the applicable reporting requirement assists 
with determining a resolution. The hour burden on industry is estimated 
at 179,301 total hours, or 879 hours for one contract within one 
organization reporting both Part C and Part D measures. The validation 
would require 378 hours from the sponsoring organization and 501 from 
the data validation contractors. The estimates are based on the total 
number of Part C and/or Part D measures, the average number of 
sponsors, and the average number of contracts by type (Part C, Part D, 
Part C/D) being validated as well as a level of effort associated with 
the individual activities associated with the data validation process. 
Form Number: CMS-10305 (OCN: 0938-1115); Frequency: Reporting--
Annually; Affected Public: Private sector--Business or other for-
profits; Number of Respondents: 135; Total Annual Responses: 657; Total 
Annual Hours: 179,301. (For policy questions regarding this collection 
contact Terry Lied at 410-786-8973. For all other issues call 410-786-
1326.)
    To obtain copies of the supporting statement and any related forms 
for the proposed paperwork collections referenced above, access CMS' 
Web Site address at http://www.cms.hhs.gov/

[[Page 43290]]

PaperworkReductionActof1995, or Email your request, including your 
address, phone number, OMB number, and CMS document identifier, to 
Paperwork@cms.hhs.gov, or call the Reports Clearance Office on (410) 
786-1326.
    In commenting on the proposed information collections please 
reference the document identifier or OMB control number. To be assured 
consideration, comments and recommendations must be submitted in one of 
the following ways by September 24, 2012:
    1. Electronically. You may submit your comments electronically to 
http://www.regulations.gov. Follow the instructions for ``Comment or 
Submission'' or ``More Search Options'' to find the information 
collection document(s) accepting comments.
    2. By regular mail. You may mail written comments to the following 
address: CMS, Office of Strategic Operations and Regulatory Affairs, 
Division of Regulations Development, Attention: Document Identifier/OMB 
Control Number --------, Room C4-26-05, 7500 Security Boulevard, 
Baltimore, Maryland 21244-1850.

    Dated: July 18, 2012.
Martique Jones,
Director, Regulations Development Group, Division B, Office of 
Strategic Operations and Regulatory Affairs.
[FR Doc. 2012-17926 Filed 7-23-12; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4120-01-P
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