Federal Register / Vol. 65, No. 219 / Monday, November 13, 2000 / Notices 67717

DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

National Oceanic and Atmospheric

Administration

[110700A]

Submission for OMB Review;

Comment Request

AGENCY: National Oceanic and

Atmospheric Administration (NOAA),

Commerce.

ACTION: At-Sea Scale Certification

Program.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The

Department of Commerce has submitted

to the Office of Management and Budget

(OMB) for clearance the following

proposal for collection of information

under the provisions of the Paperwork

Reduction Act (44 U.S.C. Chapter 35).

Form Number(s): None.

OMB Approval Number: 0648-0330.

Type of Request: Regular submission.

Burden Hours: 3,508.

Number of Respondents: 49.

Average Hours Per Response: 45

minutes for a daily scale test, 6 minutes

per day to retain printed scale output,

6 minutes to request a scale inspection,

6 minutes to attach a scale approval

sticker, 6 minutes for an application for

authority to inspect scales, 2 hours for

a request for an observer station

inspection, and 30-190 hours for scale

type evaluations.

Needs and Uses: Fishermen on certain

Federally-regulated fisheries off Alaska

must weigh their catch at sea on

approved scales. Vessels must request

inspection of scales and observer

stations, test their scales daily, and

maintain output from the scales. Related

information collection requirements are

requests from scale manufacturers to

have their scale approved, and requests

from non-NOAA scale inspectors to

have authority to conduct scale

inspections.

Affected Public: Business and other

for-profit organizations.

Frequency: Daily, annually, and on

occasion.

Respondent’s Obligation: Mandatory.

OMB Desk Officer: David Rostker,

(202) 395-3897.

Copies of the above information

collection proposal can be obtained by

calling or writing Madeleine Clayton,

DOC Forms Clearance Officer, (202)

482-3129, Department of Commerce,

Room 6086, 14th and Constitution

Avenue, NW, Washington, DC 20230 (or

via the Internet at MClayton@doc.gov).

Written comments and

recommendations for the proposed

information collection should be sent

within 30 days of publication of this

notice to David Rostker, OMB Desk

Officer, Room 10202, New Executive

Office Building, Washington, DC 20503.

Dated: November 3, 2000.

Gwellnar Banks,

Management Analyst, Office of the Chief

Information Officer.

[FR Doc. 00–28952 Filed 11–9–00; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE: 3510–22 –S

DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE

Office of the Secretary

Civilian Health and Medical Program of

the Uniformed Services (CHAMPUS);

Fiscal Year 2001 Diagnosis Related

Group (DRG) Updates

AGENCY: Office of the Secretary, DoD.

ACTION: Notice of DRG revised rates.

SUMMARY: This notice describes the

changes made to the TRICARE/

CHAMPUS DRG-based payment system

in order to conform to changes made to

the Medicare Prospective Payment

System (PPS).

It also provides the updated fixed loss

cost outlier threshold, cost-to-charge

ratios and the Internet address for

accessing the updated adjusted

standardized amounts, DRG relative

weights, and beneficiary cost-share per

diem rates to be used for FY 2001 under

the TRICARE/CHAMPUS DRG-based

payment system.

EFFECTIVE DATES: The rates, weights and

Medicare PPS changes which affect the

TRICARE/CHAMPUS DRG-based

payment system contained in this notice

are effective for admissions occurring on

or after October 1, 2000.

ADDRESSES: TRICARE Management

Activity (TMA), Medical Benefits and

Reimbursement Systems, 16401 East

Centretech Parkway, Aurora, CO 80011–

9043. For copies of the Federal Register

containing this notice, contact the

Superintendent of Documents, U.S.

Government Printing Office,

Washington, D.C. 20402, (202) 783–

3238. The charge for the Federal

Register is $1.50 for each issue payable

by check or money order to the

Superintendent of Documents.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Marty Maxey, Medical Benefits and

Reimbursement Systems, TMA,

telephone (303) 676–3627.

To obtain copies of this document, see

the ADDRESSES section above. Questions

regarding payment of specific claims

under the TRICARE/CHAMPUS DRGbased payment system should be

addressed to the appropriate contractor.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The final

rule published on September 1, 1987 (52

FR 32992) set forth the basic procedures

used under the CHAMPUS DRG-based

payment system. This was subsequently

amended by final rules published

August 31, 1988 (53 FR 33461), October

21, 1988 (53 FR 41331), December 16,

1988 (53 FR 50515), May 30, 1990 (55

FR 21863), October 22, 1990 (55 FR

42560), and September 10, 1998 (63 FR

48439).

An explicit tenet of these final rules,

and one based on the statute authorizing

the use of DRGs by TRICARE/

CHAMPUS, is that the TRICARE/

CHAMPUS DRG-based payment system

is modeled on the Medicare PPS, and

that, whenever practicable, the

TRICARE/CHAMPUS system will

follow the same rules that apply to the

Medicare PPS. HCFA publishes these

changes annually in the Federal

Register and discusses in detail the

impact of the changes.

In addition, this notice updates the

rates and weights in accordance with

our previous final rules. The actual

changes we are making, along with a

description of their relationship to the

Medicare PPS, are detailed below.

I. Medicare PPS Changes Which Affect

the TRICARE/CHAMPUS DRG-Based

Payment System

Following is a discussion of the

changes the Health Care Financing

Administration (HCFA) has made to the

Medicare PPS that affect the TRICARE/

CHAMPUS DRG-based payment system.

A. DRG Classifications

Under both the Medicare PPS and the

TRICARE/CHAMPUS DRG-based

payment system, cases are classified

into the appropriate DRG by a Grouper

program. The Grouper classifies each

case into a DRG on the basis of the

diagnosis and procedure codes and

demographic information (that is, sex,

age, and discharge status). The Grouper

used for the TRICARE/CHAMPUS DRGbased payment system is the same as the

current Medicare Grouper with two

modifications. The TRICARE/

CHAMPUS system has replaced

Medicare DRG 435 with two age-based

DRGs (900 and 901), and has

implemented thirty-four (34) neonatal

DRGs in place of Medicare DRGs 385

through 390. For admissions occurring

on or after October 1, 1995, the

CHAMPUS grouper hierarchy logic was

changed so the age split (age <29 days)

and assignments to MDC 15 occur

before assignment of the PreMDC DRGs.

This resulted in all neonate

tracheostomies and organ transplants to

be grouped to MDC 15 and not to DRGs

67718 Federal Register / Vol. 65, No. 219 / Monday, November 13, 2000 / Notices

480–483 or 495. For admissions

occurring on or after October 1, 1998,

the CHAMPUS grouper hierarchy logic

was changed to move DRG 103 to the

PreMDC DRGs and to assign patients to

PreMDC DRGs 480, 103 and 495 before

assignment to MDC 15 DRGs and the

neonatal DRGs.

For FY 2001, HCFA will implement

classification changes, including

surgical hierarchy changes. The

CHAMPUS Grouper will incorporate all

changes made to the Medicare Grouper.

B. Wage Index and Medicare

Geographic Classification Review Board

Guidelines

TRICARE/CHAMPUS will continue to

use the same wage index amounts used

for the Medicare PPS. In addition,

TRICARE/CHAMPUS will duplicate all

changes with regard to the wage index

for specific hospitals that are

redesignated by the Medicare

Geographic Classification Review Board.

C. Hospital Market Basket

TRICARE/CHAMPUS will update the

adjusted standardized amounts

according to the final updated hospital

market basket used for the Medicare

PPS according to HCFA’s August 1,

2000, final rule.

D. Outlier Payments

Since TRICARE/CHAMPUS does not

include capital payments in our DRGbased payments, we will use the fixed

loss cost outlier threshold calculated by

HCFA for paying cost outliers in the

absence of capital prospective

payments. For FY 2001, the fixed loss

cost outlier threshold is based on the

sum of the applicable DRG-based

payment rate plus any amounts payable

for IDME plus a fixed dollar amount.

Thus, for FY 2001, in order for a case

to qualify for cost outlier payments, the

costs must exceed the TRICARE/

CHAMPUS DRG base payment rate

(wage adjusted) for the DRG plus the

IDME payment plus $16,036 (wage

adjusted). The marginal cost factor for

cost outliers continues to be 80 percent.

Blood Clotting Factor

For FY 2001, TRICARE/CHAMPUS

will use the following HCPCS codes and

payment rates for blood clotting factors:

Per unit

J7190 Factor VIII (antihemophilic

factor—human) ......................... $0.85

J7191 Factor VIII (antihemophilic

factor—porcine) ......................... 2.09

J7192 Factor VIII (antihemophilic

factor—recombinant) ................. 1.12

J7194 Factor IX (complex) ........... 0.31

J7198 Anti-inhibitor ....................... 1.43

Per unit

Q0160 Factor IX (antihemophilic

factor, purified, Non-recombinant) ....................................... 1.05

Q0161 Factor IX (antihemophilic

factor, recombinant) .................. 1.12

Indirect Medical Education (IDME)

Adjustment

The Balanced Budget Refinement Act

of 1999, modified the transition for the

IDME adjustment that was established

by the Balanced Budget Act of 1997.

The new multiplier for the IDME

adjustment factor for TRICARE/

CHAMPUS for FY 2001 is 1.16.

II. Cost to Charge Ratio

For FY 2001, the cost-to-charge ratio

used for the TRICARE/CHAMPUS DRGbased payment system will be 0.5353,

which is increased to 0.5408 to account

for bad debts. This shall be used to

calculate the adjusted standardized

amounts and to calculate cost outlier

payments, except for children’s

hospitals. For children’s hospital cost

outliers, the cost-to-charge ratio used is

0.5913.

III. Updated Rates and Weights

The updated rates and weights are

accessible through the Internet at

www.tricare.osd.mil under the heading

TRICARE Provider Information. Table 1

provides the ASA rates and Table 2

provides the DRG weights to be used

under the TRICARE/CHAMPUS DRGbased payment system during FY 2001

and which is a result of the changes

described above. The implementing

regulations for the TRICARE/CHAMPUS

DRG-based payment system are in 32

CFR part 199.

Dated: November 6, 2000.

L.M. Bynum,

Alternate OSD Federal Register, Liaison

Officer, Department of Defense.

[FR Doc. 00–28866 Filed 11–9–00; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 5001–10–M

DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE

Office of the Secretary

Renewal of the Planning and Steering

Advisory Committee (Navy)

ACTION: Notice.

SUMMARY: The Planning and Steering

Advisory Committee (PSAC) has been

renewed in consonance with the public

interest, and in accordance with the

provisions of Public Law 92–463, the

‘‘Federal Advisory Committee Act.’’

The PSAC provides an avenue of

communications by which a

distinguished group representing

scientific, academic engineering, and

intelligence communities advises the

Chief of Naval Operations on questions

related to SSBN Security. Their mission

is to make in-depth technical

assessments of U.S. and foreign threat

ASW developments and related

technologies, to critically review

programs which potentially impact

SSBN survivability, and to evaluate

intelligence efforts to identify and

define ASW and SSBN survivability

threats.

The Committee will continue to be

composed of selected Group members to

conduct detailed examinations of

matters related to SSBN security.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Please contact Laura Wurzer, telephone:

301–693–0934.

Dated: November 6, 2000.

L.M. Bynum,

Alternate OSD Federal Register Liaison

Officer, Department of Defense.

[FR Doc. 00–28863 Filed 11–9–00; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 5001–10–M

DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE

Office of the Secretary

Renewal of the Telecommunications

Service Priority System Oversight

Committee (TSPOC)

ACTION: Notice.

SUMMARY: The TSPOC has been renewed

in consonance with the public interest,

and in accordance with the provisions

of Pub. L. 92–463, the ‘‘Federal

Advisory Committee Act.’’

The TSPOC provides advice and

recommendations to the Secretary of

Defense regarding the priority treatment

of national security and emergency

preparedness telecommunications

services. Functions include evaluating

the currency of policies, procedures and

system documentation requirements,

and assessing the adequacy of the

system in the light of technological

advances.

The TSPOC will continue to be

composed of 18 members, both federal,

state and local government, and nongovernment individuals, who are

experts in telecommunications services.

Efforts will be made to ensure that there

is a fairly balanced membership in

terms of the functions to be performed

and the interest groups represented.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Ms.

Debbie Bea, National Communications