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[Federal Register Volume 79, Number 184 (Tuesday, September 23, 2014)]
[Notices]
[Pages 56808-56809]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2014-22634]

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DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES

Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services

[CMS-1626-N]

Medicare Program; Solicitation of Nominations to the Advisory 
Panel on Hospital Outpatient Payment

AGENCY: Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS), HHS.

ACTION: Notice.

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SUMMARY: This notice solicits nominations for up to four new members to 
the Advisory Panel on Hospital Outpatient Payment (HOP, the Panel). 
There are vacancies on the Panel effective September 30, 2014.
    The purpose of the Panel is to advise the Secretary of the 
Department of Health and Human Services and the Administrator of the 
Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services on the clinical integrity of 
the Ambulatory Payment Classification (APC) groups and their associated 
weights, and supervision of hospital outpatient services.
    The Secretary rechartered the Panel in 2012 for a 2-year period 
effective through November 19, 2014. CMS intends to recharter the Panel 
for another 2-year period prior to expiration of the current charter.

DATES: Submission of Nominations: We will consider nominations if they 
are received no later than 5 p.m. (e.s.t.) November 24, 2014.

ADDRESSES: Please submit nominations electronically to the following 
email address: APCPanel@cms.hhs.gov.
    Web site: For additional information on the Panel and updates to 
the Panel's activities, we refer readers to our Web site at the 
following address: http://www.cms.gov/Regulations-and-Guidance/Guidance/FACA/AdvisoryPanelonAmbulatoryPaymentClassificationGroups.html.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Persons wishing to nominate 
individuals to serve on the Panel or to obtain further information may 
contact Carol Schwartz at the following email address: 
APCPanel@cms.hhs.gov or call (410) 786-3985.
    News Media: Representatives should contact the CMS Press Office at 
(202) 690-6145.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

I. Background

    The Secretary of the Department of Health and Human Services (the 
Secretary) is required by section 1833(t)(9)(A) of the Social Security 
Act (the Act), and section 222 of the Public Health Service Act (PHS 
Act) to consult with an expert outside advisory panel regarding the 
clinical integrity of the Ambulatory Payment Classification (APC) 
groups and relative payment weights that are components of the Medicare 
Hospital Outpatient Prospective Payment System (OPPS), and the 
appropriate supervision level for hospital outpatient services. The 
Panel is governed by the provisions of the Federal Advisory Committee 
Act (FACA) (Pub. L. 92-463), as amended (5 U.S.C. Appendix 2), which 
sets forth standards for the formation and use of advisory panels. The 
panel may consider data collected or developed by entities and 
organizations (other than the Department of Health and Human Services) 
as part of their deliberations.
    The Charter provides that the Panel shall meet up to three times 
annually. We consider the technical advice provided by the Panel as we 
prepare the proposed and final rules to update the OPPS for the 
following calendar year.
    The Panel shall consist of a chair and up to 19 members who are 
full-time employees of hospitals, hospital systems, or other Medicare 
providers that are subject to the OPPS. (For purposes of the Panel, 
consultants or independent contractors are not considered to be 
representatives of providers.)
    The current Panel members are as follows: (Note: The asterisk [*] 
indicates the Panel members whose terms end effective September 30, 
2014.)
     E. L. Hambrick, M.D., J.D., Chair, a CMS Medical Officer.
     Karen Borman, M.D.
     Kari S. Cornicelli, C.P.A., FHFMA.*
     Brain D. Kavanagh, M.D., M.P.H.*
     Scott Manaker, M.D., Ph.D.*
     John Marshall, CRA, RCC, RT.*
     Jim Nelson
     Leah Osbahr
     Jacqueline Phillips
     Johnathan Pregler, M.D.
     Traci Rabine
     Wendy Resnick, FHFMA
     Michael Rabovsky, M.D.
     Marianna V. Spanki-Varelas M.D., Ph.D., M.B.A.
     Gale Walker
     Kris Zimmer
    Panel members serve on a voluntary basis, without compensation, 
according

[[Page 56809]]

to an advance written agreement; however, for the meetings, CMS 
reimburses travel, meals, lodging, and related expenses in accordance 
with standard Government travel regulations. CMS has a special interest 
in ensuring, while taking into account the nominee pool, that the Panel 
is diverse in all respects of the following: Geography; rural or urban 
practice; race, ethnicity, sex, and disability; medical or technical 
specialty; and type of hospital, hospital health system, or other 
Medicare provider subject to the OPPS.
    Based upon either self-nominations or nominations submitted by 
providers or interested organizations, the Secretary, or her designee, 
appoints new members to the Panel from among those candidates 
determined to have the required expertise. New appointments are made in 
a manner that ensures a balanced membership under the FACA guidelines.

II. Criteria for Nominees

    The Panel must be fairly balanced in its membership in terms of the 
points of view represented and the functions to be performed. Each 
Panel member must be employed full-time by a hospital, hospital system, 
or other Medicare provider subject to payment under the OPPS. All 
members must have technical expertise to enable them to participate 
fully in the Panel's work. Such expertise encompasses hospital payment 
systems; hospital medical care delivery systems; provider billing 
systems; APC groups; Current Procedural Terminology codes; and alpha-
numeric Health Care Common Procedure Coding System codes; and the use 
of, and payment for, drugs, medical devices, and other services in the 
outpatient setting, as well as other forms of relevant expertise. For 
supervision deliberations, the Panel shall have members that represent 
the interests of Critical Access Hospitals (CAHs), who advise CMS only 
regarding the level of supervision for hospital outpatient services.
    It is not necessary for a nominee to possess expertise in all of 
the areas listed, but each must have a minimum of 5 years experience 
and currently have full-time employment in his or her area of 
expertise. Generally, members of the Panel serve overlapping terms up 
to 4 years, based on the needs of the Panel and contingent upon the 
rechartering of the Panel. A member may serve after the expiration of 
his or her term until a successor has been sworn in.
    Any interested person or organization may nominate one or more 
qualified individuals. Self-nominations will also be accepted. Each 
nomination must include the following:
     Letter of Nomination stating the reasons why the nominee 
should be considered.
     Curriculum vitae or resume of the nominee that includes an 
email address where the nominee can be contacted.
     Written and signed statement from the nominee that the 
nominee is willing to serve on the Panel under the conditions described 
in this notice and further specified in the Charter.
     The hospital or hospital system name and address, or CAH 
name and address, as well as all Medicare hospital and or Medicare CAH 
billing numbers of the facility where the nominee is employed.

III. Copies of the Charter

    To obtain a copy of the Panel's Charter, we refer readers to our 
Web site at the following: http://www.cms.gov/Regulations-and-Guidance/Guidance/FACA/AdvisoryPanelonAmbulatoryPaymentClassificationGroups.html.

IV. Collection of Information Requirements

    This document does not impose information collection requirements, 
that is, reporting, recordkeeping or third-party disclosure 
requirements. Consequently, there is no need for review by the Office 
of Management and Budget under the authority of the Paperwork Reduction 
Act of 1995.

    Dated: September 15, 2014.
Marilyn Tavenner,
Administrator, Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services.
[FR Doc. 2014-22634 Filed 9-22-14; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4120-01-P
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