28396 Federal Register / Vol. 63, No. 99 / Friday, May 22, 1998 / Notices

Respondents: 689,005; Total Annual

Responses: 2,598,493; Total Annual

Hours: 365,914.

To obtain copies of the supporting

statement for the proposed paperwork

collections referenced above, E-mail

your request, including your address

and phone number, to

Paperwork@hcfa.gov, or call the Reports

Clearance Office on (410) 786–1326.

Written comments and

recommendations for the proposed

information collections must be mailed

within 30 days of this notice directly to

the OMB Desk Officer designated at the

following address: OMB Human

Resources and Housing Branch,

Attention: Allison Eydt, New Executive

Office Building, Room 10235,

Washington, DC. 20503.

Dated: May 15, 1998.

John P. Burke III,

HCFA Reports Clearance Officer, HCFA,

Office of Information Services, Information

Technology Investment Management Group,

Division of HCFA Enterprise Standards.

[FR Doc. 98–13680 Filed 5–21–98; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 4120–03–P

DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND

HUMAN SERVICES

Health Care Financing Administration

Privacy Act of 1974; Report of New

System

AGENCY: Health Care Financing

Administration (HCFA), Department

Health and Human Services (HHS).

ACTION: Notice of New System of

Records.

SUMMARY: In accordance with the

requirements of the Privacy Act of 1974,

we are proposing to establish a new

system of records, ‘‘Long Term Care

Minimum Data Set (LTC MDS),’’ HHS/

HCFA/CMSO System No. 09–70–1516.

We have provided background

information about the proposed system

in the ‘‘Supplementary Information’’

section below. Although the Privacy Act

requires only that the ‘‘routine use’’

portion of the system be published for

comment, HCFA invites comments on

all portions of this notice. See ‘‘Effective

Dates’’ section for comment period.

EFFECTIVE DATES: HCFA filed a new

system report with the Chair of the

House Committee on Government

Reform and Oversight, the Chair of the

Senate Committee on Governmental

Affairs, and the Administrator, Office of

Information and Regulatory Affairs,

Office of Management and Budget

(OMB) on May 19, 1998. To ensure that

all parties have adequate time in which

to comment, the new system of records,

including routine uses, will become

effective 40 days after the publication of

this notice or from the date submitted to

OMB and the Congress, whichever is

later, unless HCFA receives comments

which require alterations to this notice.

ADDRESSES: The public should address

comments to the HCFA Privacy Act

Officer, Division of Freedom of

Information and Privacy, Office of

Information Services, C2–01–11,

Baltimore, Maryland 21244–1850.

Comments received will be available for

review at this location, by appointment,

Monday through Friday from 9 am.—3

pm., eastern time zone.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Helene Fredeking, Director, Division of

Outcomes and Improvements, Center for

Medicaid and State Operations, HCFA,

7500 Security Boulevard, S2–11–07,

Baltimore, Maryland 21244–1850. The

telephone number is (410) 786–7304.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Sections

1819(b)(3)(A) and 1919(b)(3)(A) of the

Social Security Act require LTC

facilities participating in the Medicare

and Medicaid programs to conduct

comprehensive, accurate, standardized,

reproducible assessments of each

resident’s functional capacity. Sections

1819(f) and 1919(f) of the Social

Security Act require the Secretary to

specify an MDS of core elements and

common definitions for use by the

facilities, to establish guidelines for use

of the data set, and to designate one or

more assessment instruments which a

state requires facilities to use.

A notice of proposed rulemaking

(NPRM) was published in the Federal

Register, Vol. 57, No. 249, page 61626

on December 28, 1992. A final rule was

published, in the Federal Register, Vol.

62, No. 246, page 67174—67213, on

December 23, 1997. The rule requires

facilities certified to participate in

Medicare and/or Medicaid to encode

and transmit the information contained

in the MDS to the state using a format

that conforms to standard record layouts

and data dictionaries. The state is

subsequently required to transmit the

data to HCFA using the same standard

record layouts and data dictionaries.

This new system of records shall

contain the assessment information

(MDS records) for each individual

residing in LTC facilities that are

certified to participate in the Medicare

and/or Medicaid programs (including

private pay individuals). Each state’s

resident assessment instrument must

contain the assessment instrument

designated by HCFA, which includes

the MDS and its common definitions,

triggers, and utilization guidelines.

The LTC MDS includes standard

demographic data for identification

such as resident name, Social Security

Number, Medicare number, Medicaid

number, gender, race/ethnicity, and

birth date. The MDS may also contain

data elements that describe the

resident’s health status in the following

areas:

Customary Routines

Cognitive Patterns

Communication/Hearing Patterns

Vision Patterns

Mood and Behavior Patterns

Psychosocial Well-being

Physical Functioning and Structural

Problems

Continence Status

Disease Diagnoses

Health Conditions

Oral/Nutritional Status

Oral/Dental Status

Skin Condition

Activity Pursuit Patterns

Medications

Special Treatments and Procedures

Discharge Potential and Overall Status

Participation in Assessment

The Privacy Act allows us to disclose

information without an individual’s

consent if the information is to be used

for a purpose which is compatible with

the purpose(s) for which the

information was collected. Any such

compatible use of data is known as a

‘‘routine use.’’ The proposed routine

uses in this system meet the

compatibility requirement of the Privacy

Act.

Dated: May 19, 1998.

Nancy-Ann Min DeParle,

Administrator, Health Care Financing

Administration.

09–70–1516

SYSTEM NAME:

Long Term Care Minimum Data Set

(LTC MDS), HHS/HCFA/CMSO.

SECURITY CLASSIFICATION:

None.

SYSTEM LOCATION:

HCFA Data Center, 7500 Security

Boulevard, Baltimore, Maryland 21244–

1850.

HCFA contractors and agents at

various locations.

CATEGORIES OF INDIVIDUALS COVERED BY THE

SYSTEM:

Residents in all LTC facilities that are

Medicare and/or Medicaid certified,

including private pay individuals.

CATEGORIES OF RECORDS IN THE SYSTEM:

Individual-level demographic and

identifying data as well as clinical status

data.
Federal Register / Vol. 63, No. 99 / Friday, May 22, 1998 / Notices 28397

AUTHORITY FOR MAINTENANCE OF THE SYSTEM:

Sections 1102(a), 1819(f), 1919(f),

1819(b)(3)(A), 1919(b)(3)(A), and 1864

of the Social Security Act.

PURPOSE(S):

To aid in the administration of the

survey and certification of Medicare/

Medicaid LTC facilities and to study the

effectiveness and quality of care given

in those facilities. This system will also

support regulatory, reimbursement,

policy, and research functions, and

enable regulators to provide long term

care facility staff with outcome data for

providers’ internal quality improvement

activities.

ROUTINE USE OF RECORDS MAINTAINED IN THE

SYSTEM, INCLUDING CATEGORIES OF USERS AND

THE PURPOSES OF SUCH USES:

These routine uses specify additional

circumstances under which HCFA may

release information from the LTC MDS

system without the consent of the

individual to whom such information

pertains. Each proposed disclosure of

information under these routine uses

will be evaluated to ensure that the

disclosure is legally permissible,

including but not limited to ensuring

that the purpose of the disclosure is

compatible with the purpose for which

the information was collected. Also,

HCFA will require each prospective

recipient of such information to agree in

writing to certain conditions to ensure

the continuing confidentiality and

physical safeguards of the information.

More specifically, as a condition of each

disclosure under these routine uses,

HCFA will, as necessary and

appropriate:

(a) Determine that no other Federal

statute specifically prohibits disclosure

of the information;

(b) Determine that the use or

disclosure does not violate legal

limitations under which the information

was provided, collected, or obtained;

(c) Determine that the purpose for

which the disclosure is to be made;

(1) Cannot reasonably be

accomplished unless the information is

provided in individually identifiable

form;

(2) Is of sufficient importance to

warrant the effect on or the risk to the

privacy of the individual(s) that

additional exposure of the record(s)

might bring; and

(3) There is a reasonable probability

that the purpose of the disclosure will

be accomplished;

(d) Require the recipient of the

information to:

(1) Establish reasonable

administrative, technical, and physical

safeguards to prevent unauthorized

access, use, or disclosure of the record

or any part thereof. The physical

safeguards shall provide a level of

security that is at least the equivalent to

the level of security contemplated in

OMB Circular No. A–130 (revised),

Appendix III, Security of Federal

Automated Information Systems which

sets forth guidelines for security plans

for automated information systems in

Federal agencies.

(2) Remove or destroy the information

that allows subject individual(s) to be

identified at the earliest time at which

removal or destruction can be

accomplished, consistent with the

purpose of the request;

(3) Refrain from using or disclosing

the information for any purpose other

than the stated purpose under which the

information was disclosed; and

(4) Make no further use or disclosure

of the information except:

(i) To prevent or address an

emergency directly affecting the health

or safety of an individual;

(ii) For use on another project under

the same conditions, provided HCFA

has authorized the additional use(s) in

writing; or

(iii) When required by law;

(e) Secure a written statement or

agreement from the prospective

recipient of the information whereby the

prospective recipient attests to an

understanding of, and willingness to

abide by, the foregoing provisions and

any additional provisions that HCFA

deems appropriate in the particular

circumstance; and

(f) Determine whether the disclosure

constitutes a computer ‘‘matching

program’’ as defined in 5 U.S.C.

552a(a)(8). If the disclosure is

determined to be a computer ‘‘matching

program,’’ the instructions regarding

preparation and transmission of a

matching agreement as stated in 5

U.S.C. 552a(o) must be followed.

Disclosure may be made:

1. To a Congressional office from the

record of an individual in response to

an inquiry from the Congressional office

made at the request of that individual.

2. To the Bureau of Census for use in

processing research and statistical data

directly related to the administration of

Agency programs.

3. To the Department of Justice, to a

court or other tribunal, or to another

party before such tribunal, when:

(a) HHS, or any component thereof;

(b) Any HHS employee in his or her

official capacity; or

(c) Any HHS employee in his or her

individual capacity where the

Department of Justice (or HHS, where it

is authorized to do so) has agreed to

represent the employee; or

(d) The United States or any agency

thereof where HHS determines that the

litigation is likely to affect HHS or any

of its components; is party to litigation

or has an interest to such litigation, and

HHS determines that the use of such

records by the Department of Justice, the

tribunal, or the other party is relevant

and necessary to the litigation and

would help in the effective presentation

of the governmental party or interest,

provided, however, that in each case

HHS determines that such disclosure is

compatible with the purpose for which

the records were collected.

4. To an individual or organization for

a research, evaluation, or

epidemiological project related to the

prevention of disease or disability, or

the restoration or maintenance of health.

5. To a HCFA contractor for the

purpose of collating, analyzing,

aggregating, or otherwise refining or

processing records in this system or for

developing, modifying, and/or

manipulating automated data processing

(ADP) software. Data could also be

disclosed to contractors incidental to

consultation, programming, operation,

user assistance, or maintenance for ADP

or telecommunications systems

containing or supporting records in the

system.

6. To an agency of a state government,

or established by state law, for purposes

of determining, evaluating, and/or

assessing overall or aggregate cost,

effectiveness, and/or quality of health

care services provided in the state; or for

the purpose of administration of federalstate health care programs within the

state. Data will be released to the state

only on those individuals who are either

residents in long term care facilities

within the state or are legal residents of

the state irrespective of the location of

the LTC facility wherein they are

residents. In effect, only data collected

by the state for HCFA may be released

for this purpose.

7. To another Federal agency (1) To

contribute to the accuracy of HCFA’s

proper payment of Medicare health

benefits, and/or (2) to enable such

agency to administer a Federal health

benefits program, or as necessary to

enable such agency to fulfill a

requirement of a Federal statute or

regulation that implements a health

benefits program funded in whole or in

part with Federal funds.

8. To a HCFA contractor to perform

Title XI or Title XVIII (of the Social

Security Act) functions. Records from

the LTC MDS may be released to a Peer

Review Organization (PRO), or other

HCFA contractor respectively, for

performing medical review functions

under these provisions of the law.
28398 Federal Register / Vol. 63, No. 99 / Friday, May 22, 1998 / Notices

9. To a HCFA contractor, including

but not limited to, fiscal intermediaries

and carriers under Title XVIII of the

Social Security Act, to administer some

aspect of a HCFA-administered health

benefits program, or to a grantee of a

HCFA-administered grant program,

which program is or could be affected

by fraud or abuse, for the purpose of

preventing, deterring, discovering,

detecting, investigating, examining,

prosecuting, suing with respect to,

defending against, correcting,

remedying, or otherwise combating such

fraud or abuse in such programs.

10. To another Federal agency or to an

instrumentality of any governmental

jurisdiction within or under the control

of the United States, including any state

or local government agency, for the

purpose of preventing, deterring,

discovering, detecting, investigating,

examining, prosecuting, suing with

respect to, defending against, correcting,

remedying, or otherwise combating such

fraud or abuse in such programs.

11. To any entity that makes payment

for or oversees administration of health

care services, for the purpose of

preventing, deterring, discovering,

detecting, investigating, examining,

prosecuting, suing with respect to,

defending against, correcting,

remedying, or otherwise combating

fraud or abuse against such entity or the

program or services administered by

such entity, provided:

(i) Such entity enters into an

agreement with HCFA to share

knowledge and information regarding

actual or potential fraudulent or abusive

practices or activities regarding the

delivery or receipt of health care

services, or regarding securing payment

or reimbursement for health care

services, or any practice or activity that,

if directed toward a HCFA-administered

program, might reasonably be construed

as actually or potentially fraudulent or

abusive;

(ii) Such entity does, on a regular

basis, or at such times as HCFA may

request, fully and freely share such

knowledge and information with HCFA,

or as directed by HCFA, with HCFA’s

contractors; and

(iii) HCFA determines that it may

reasonably conclude that the knowledge

or information it has received or is

likely to receive from such entity could

lead to preventing, deterring,

discovering, detecting, investigating,

examining, prosecuting, suing with

respect to, defending against, correcting,

remedying, or otherwise combating

fraud or abuse in the Medicare,

Medicaid, or other health benefits

program administered by HCFA or

funded in whole or in part by Federal

funds.

POLICIES AND PRACTICES FOR STORING,

RETRIEVING, ACCESSING, RETAINING, AND

DISPOSING OF RECORDS IN THE SYSTEM:

STORAGE:

All records are stored on magnetic

media.

RETRIEVABILITY:

All records are retrieved by Social

Security Number or Health Insurance

Claim Number or by state-assigned

Medicaid number.

SAFEGUARDS:

For computerized records, safeguards

established in accordance with

Department standards and National

Institute of Standards and Technology

guidelines (e.g., security codes) will be

used, limiting access to authorized

personnel. System securities are

established in accordance with HHS,

Information Resource Management

(IRM) Circular #10, Automated

Information Systems (AIS) Guide,

Systems Security Policies, and OMB

Circular No. A–130 (revised), Appendix

III.

RETENTION AND DISPOSAL:

Records are maintained with

identifiers as long as needed for

program research.

SYSTEM MANAGER(S) AND ADDRESS:

Director, Center for Medicaid and

State Operations, 7500 Security

Boulevard, Baltimore, Maryland, 21244–

1850.

NOTIFICATION PROCEDURE:

To determine whether the

individual’s record is in the system, the

subject individual should write to the

system manager and furnish the

following information: Name of system;

health insurance claim number; and for

verification purposes, the subject

individual’s name (woman’s maiden

name, if applicable), social security

number, address, date of birth, and sex.

RECORD ACCESS PROCEDURES:

For purpose of access, use the same

procedures outlined in Notification

Procedures above. Individuals in the

system should also reasonably specify

the record contents being sought. (These

access procedures are in accordance

with the Department regulations 45 CFR

5b.5.)

CONTESTING RECORD PROCEDURES:

The subject individual should contact

the system manager named above, and

reasonably identify the record and

specify the information to be contested.

State the corrective action sought and

the reasons for the correction with

supporting justification. (These

procedures are in accordance with

Department regulations 45 CFR 5b.7.)

RECORD SOURCE CATEGORIES:

LTC Resident Assessment Instrument

which includes the minimum data set

and resident assessment protocols.

SYSTEMS EXEMPTED FROM CERTAIN PROVISIONS

OF THE ACT:

None.

[FR Doc. 98–13856 Filed 5–21–98; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 4120–03–P

DEPARTMENT OF HOUSING AND

URBAN DEVELOPMENT

[Docket No. FR–4341–N–11]

Federal Property Suitable as Facilities

to Assist the Homeless

AGENCY: Office of the Assistant

Secretary for Community Planning and

Development, HUD.

ACTION: Notice.

SUMMARY: This Notice identifies

unutilized, underutilized, excess, and

surplus Federal property reviewed by

HUD for suitability for possible use to

assist the homeless.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Mark Johnston, room 7256, Department

of Housing and Urban Development,

451 Seventh Street SW., Washington,

DC 20410; telephone (202) 708–1226;

TTY number for the hearing and speechimpaired (202) 708–2565 (these

telephone numbers are not toll-free), or

call the toll-free Title V information line

at 1–800–927–7588.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: In

accordance with 24 CFR part 581 and

section 501 of the Stewart B. McKinney

Homeless Assistance Act (42 U.S.C.

11411), as amended, HUD is publishing

this Notice to identify Federal buildings

and other real property that HUD has

reviewed for suitability for use to assist

the homeless. The properties were

reviewed using information provided to

HUD by Federal landholding agencies

regarding unutilized and underutilized

buildings and real property controlled

by such agencies or by GSA regarding

its inventory of excess or surplus

Federal property. This Notice is also

published in order to comply with the

December 12, 1988 Court Order in

National Coalition for the Homeless v.

Veterans Administration, No. 88–2503–

OG (D.D.C.).

Properties reviewed are listed in this

Notice according to the following