59002 Federal Register / Vol. 65, No. 192 / Tuesday, October 3, 2000 / Notices

contractor records will be transferred to

the local WVPT for destruction.

SYSTEM MANAGER(S) AND ADDRESS:

The records of individuals served by

the WVPT are managed by local System

Managers in the various HHS sites listed

in Appendix A.

NOTIFICATION PROCEDURES:

For purposes of notification, the

subject individual, and/or the

individual’s legal representative should

write to the local System Manager who

will require the system name, requestor

name, address, and Social Security

Number to ascertain whether the

individual’s record is in the system.

RECORD ACCESS PROCEDURES:

For purposes of access, use the same

procedures outlined in Notification

Procedures above. Requestors must also

reasonably specify the record contents

being sought. (These procedures are in

accordance with Department regulation

45 CFR 5b.5(a)(2).)

CONTESTING RECORD PROCEDURES:

The subject individual shall contact

the System Manager and reasonably

identify the record and specify the

information being contested. State the

corrective action sought (addition to,

deletion of, or substitution of) and the

reasons for the correction with

supporting justification. (These

procedures are in accordance with

Department regulation 45 CFR 5b.7.)

RECORD SOURCE CATEGORIES:

Information in this system of records

is supplied by the individual contacting

the WVPT, this individual’s coworkers

(including the supervisor), a member of

the individual’s family, sources to/from

whom the individual has been referred

for assistance, Departmental officials

involved in the situation (such as

security staff), or other sources involved

with the situation and its resolution.

SYSTEMS EXEMPTED FROM CERTAIN PROVISIONS

OF THE PRIVACY ACT:

None.

Appendix A

1. For employees in the Southwest DC

area, contact: Workplace Violence

Prevention Team Leader, PSC Work/Life

Center, 330 C Street, SW, Room 1250,

Washington, DC 20201.

2. For employees on the MIH Campus

in Bethesda, MD, contact: Critical

Incidents Violence Intervention League

(CIVIL) Team Leader, OHRM/OD, 31

Center Drive, Room 1C39, Bethesda, MD

20892.

3. For employees at HCFA

headquarters in Baltimore, MD, contact:

Crisis Management Team Leader, 7500

Security Boulevard, Room S1–23–27,

Baltimore, MD 21244.

4. For employees at CDC headquarters

in Atlanta, GA, contact: Crisis

Management Team Chair, Associate

Director for Management and

Operations, 1600 Clifton Road, NE, MS–

D15, Atlanta, GA 30333, or, Crisis

Management Team Co-Chair, Employee

Relations Specialist, 4770 Buford

Highway, MS–K17, Atlanta, GA 30341–

3274.

5. For employees in SAMHSA,

contact: SAMHSA Crisis Intervention

Team Leader, SAMHSA, Division of

Human Resources Management, 5600

Fishers Lane, Room 14C17, Rockville,

Maryland 20857, 301–443–4006.

[FR Doc. 00–25293 Filed 10–2–00; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 4150–04–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

the Office of Management and Budget

(OMB) to allow a proposed information

collection project: ‘‘Medical

Expenditure Panel Survey Household

Component (MEPS–HC)—2001 through

2004’’. In accordance with the

Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995,

Public Law 104–13 (44 U.S.C.

3506(c)(2)(A)), AHRQ invites the public

to comment on this proposed

information collection.

DATES: Comments on this notice must be

received by December 4, 2000.

ADDRESSES: Written comments should

be submitted to: Cynthia McMichael,

Reports Clearance Officer, AHRQ, 2101

East Jefferson Street, Suite 500,

Rockville, MD 20852–4908.

Comments submitted in response to

this notice will be summarized and

included in the request for OMB

approval of the proposed information

collection. All comments will become a

matter of public record.

In accordance with the above-cited

legislation, comments on the AHRQ

information collection proposal are

requested with regard to any of the

following: (a) Whether the proposed

collection of information is necessary

for the proper performance of functions

of the Agency, including whether the

information will have practical utility;

(b) the accuracy of the Agency’s

estimate of the burden (including hours

and costs) of the proposed collection 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 on

respondents, including the sue of

automated collection techniques or

other forms of information technology.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Proposed Project

‘‘Medical Expenditure Panel Survey

Household Component (MEPS–HC)—

2001 through 2004’’.

The AHRQ intends to conduct an

annual panel survey of U.S. households

to collect information on a variety of

measures related to health status, health

insurance coverage, health care use and

expenditures, and sources of payment

for health services. Each panel consists

of a nationally representative sample of

U.S. households who remain in MEPS

for two consecutive years of data

collection. The first panel of MEPS

began in 1996 and has continued

annually thereafter. The MEPS–HC is

jointly sponsored by the AHRQ and the

National Center for Health Statistics

(NCHS).

It will be conducted using a sample of

households selected from households

which responded to the National Health

Interview Survey (NHIS) sponsored by

NCHS. The NHIS is a household survey

which collects health related data from

approximately 50,000 households and

110,000 people. The NHIS is used as the

sampling frame for the MEPS and

several other surveys as part of efforts

by the Department of Health and Human

Services (HHS) to integrate survey data

collection activities.

Data to be collected from each

household include detailed information

on demographics, health conditions,

current health status, utilization of

health care providers, charges and

payments for health care services,

quality of care received, medications,

employment and health insurance.

Subject to AHRQ and NCHS

confidentiality statutes, data will be

made available through publications,

articles in major journals as well as

public use data files. The data are

intended to be used for purposes such

as:

• Generating national estimates of

individual and family health care use

and expenditures, private and public

health insurance coverage, and the

Federal Register / Vol. 65, No. 192 / Tuesday, October 3, 2000 / Notices 59003

availability, costs and scope of private

health insurance benefits among

Americans;

• Examining the effects of changes in

how chronic care and disability are

managed and financed;

• Evaluating the growing impact of

managed care and of enrollment in

different types of managed care plans;

and

• Examining access to and costs of

health care for common diseases and

conditions, health care quality,

prescription drug use, and other health

issues.

Statisticians and researchers will use

these data to make important

generalizations on the civilian noninstitutionalized population of the

United States, as well as to conduct

research in which the family is the unit

of analysis.

Method of Collection

The data will be collected using a

combination of modes. For example, the

AHRQ intends to introduce study

participants to the survey through

advance mailings. The first contact will

provide the household with information

regarding the importance and uses of

the information obtained. The AHRQ

will then conduct five (in-person)

interviews with each household to

obtain health care use and expense data.

Data will be collected using a computerassisted personal interviewing method

(CAPI). In certain cases, AHRQ will

conduct interviews over the telephone,

if necessary. Burden estimates follow:

Estimated Annual Respondent Burden

Per Year

Each MEPS participant is asked to

complete 5 interviews over two and one

half years. Each interview averages 1.8

hours in length. Total burden is

estimated in the following chart.

Survey period Number of

completes

Burden per

complete

(hours)

Total burden

(hours)

Feb–July 2001 ............................................................................................................................. 19,380 1.8 34,884

August–Dec 2001 ........................................................................................................................ 13,280 1.8 23,904

Feb–July 2002 ............................................................................................................................. 21,248 1.8 34,246

Aug–Dec 2002 ............................................................................................................................. 16,239 1.8 29,230

Feb–July 2003 ............................................................................................................................. 24,187 1.8 43,537

148,291

Dated: September 27, 2000.

John M. Eisenberg,

Director.

[FR Doc. 00–25339 Filed 10–2–00; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 4160–90–M

DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND

HUMAN SERVICES

Centers for Disease Control and

Prevention

[60Day–00–52]

Proposed Data Collections Submitted

for Public Comment and

Recommendations

In compliance with the requirement

of Section 3506(c)(2)(A) of the

Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, the

Centers for Disease Control and

Prevention (CDC) is providing an

opportunity for public comment on

proposed data collection projects. To

request more information on the

proposed projects or to obtain a copy of

the data collection plans and

instruments, call the CDC Assistant

Reports Clearance Officer at 404–639–

7090.

Comments are invited on: (i) Whether

the proposed collection of information

is necessary for the proper performance

of the functions of the CDC, including

whether the information shall have a

practical utility; (ii) the accuracy of the

agency’s estimate of the burden of the

proposed collection of information; (iii)

ways to enhance the quality, utility, and

clarity of the information to be

collected; and (iv) ways to minimize the

burden of the collection of information

on respondents, including the use of

automated collection techniques or

other forms of information technology.

Send comments to Anne O’Connor, CDC

Assistant Reports Clearance Officer,

1600 Clifton Road, MS–D24, Atlanta,

Georgia 30333. Written comments

should be received within 60 days of

this notice.

Proposed Project

Survey to Determine the National

Capacity to Provide Colorectal Cancer

Screening and Follow-up

Examinations—New—The National

Center for Chronic Disease Prevention

and Health Promotion, Division of

Cancer Prevention and Control,

proposes to conduct a study to provide

a national assessment of the current

capacity to conduct colorectal cancer

(CRC) screening and follow-up

examinations for average risk persons

aged 50 and older. Colorectal cancer is

the second leading cause of cancerrelated deaths in the United States.

While there is strong scientific evidence

that screening for CRC reduces

incidence and mortality from this

disease, rates of use of screening tests

are currently low. Efforts to promote

widespread screening for CRC are

intensifying among local, state, and

federal health agencies and professional

organizations nationwide. However,

limited information is available

regarding the number of health care

personnel currently trained and

available to perform screening and

follow-up examinations.

The proposed study will be

conducted through the implementation

of a survey which will be mailed to a

random sample of 1,800 providers

known to possess flexible

sigmoidoscopes and colonoscopes,

based upon lists provided by major

endoscopic equipment manufacturers.

The sampling frame will be designed to

include providers from all regions of the

country and all physician specialists

who may be screening for CRC. The

survey will provide information on the

types of health care providers who are

performing CRC screening and followup examinations, the equipment

currently being used for screening and

follow-up examinations, and current

reimbursement rates for these tests. The

results of the analysis will be used to (1)

identify deficits in the medical

infrastructure, (2) guide the

development of training initiatives and

educational programs for health care

providers, and (3) provide critical

baseline information for local, state and

federal policy makers for the planning

of national initiatives to increase

colorectal cancer screening. There is no

cost to respondents.