[Federal Register Volume 63, Number 147 (Friday, July 31, 1998)]
[Notices]
[Pages 40882-40883]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 98-20421]


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DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE

Office of the Secretary


Proposed Collection; Comment Request

AGENCY: Office of the Assistant Secretary of Defense Health Affairs.

ACTION: Notice.

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    In accordance with Section 3506(c)(2)(A) of the Paperwork Reduction 
Act of 1995, the Office of the Assistant Secretary of Defense for 
Health Affairs announces the proposed public information collection and 
seeks public comment on the provisions thereof. Comments are invited 
on: (a) Whether the proposed collection of information is necessary for 
the proper performance of the functions of the agency, including 
whether the information shall have practical utility; (b) the accuracy 
of the agency's estimate of the burden of the information collection; 
(c) ways to enhance the quality, utility, and clarity of the 
information to be collected; and (d) ways to minimize the burden of the 
information collection on respondents, including through the use of 
automated collection techniques or other forms of information 
technology.

DATES: Consideration will be given to all comments received by 
September 29, 1998.

ADDRESSES: Written comments and recommendations on the information 
collection should be sent to TRICARE Management Activity, Medical 
Benefits and Reimbursement Systems, 16401 East Centretech Parkway, 
ATTN: David Bennett, Aurora, CO 80011-9043.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: To request more information on this 
proposed information collection, please write to the above address or 
call TRICARE Management Activity, Medical Benefits and Reimbursement 
Systems, at (303) 676-3494.
    Title; Associated Form; and OMB Number: Application for CHAMPUS-
Provider Status: CORPORATE SERVICES PROVIDER.
    Needs and Uses: The information collection will allow eligible 
providers to apply for Corporate Services Provider status under the 
TRICARE program.
    Affected Public: Businesses or other for-profit; not-for-profit 
institutions.
    Annual Burden Hours: 333.
    Number of Respondents: 1,000.
    Responses for Respondent: 1.
    Average Burden per Response: 20 minutes.
    Frequency: On occasion.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Summary of Information Collection

    TRICARE Management Activity (TMA), formerly known as OCHAMPUS, is 
in the process of submitting a final rule for publication in the 
Federal Register, creating a fourth class of CHAMPUS providers 
consisting of freestanding corporations and foundations that render 
principally professional ambulatory or in-home care and technical 
diagnostic procedures. The intent of the rule is not to create 
additional benefits that ordinarily would not be covered under CHAMPUS 
if provided by a more traditional health care delivery system, but 
rather to allow those services which would otherwise be allowed except 
for an individual provider's affiliation with a freestanding corporate 
facility. The addition of the corporate class will recognize the 
current range of providers within today's health care delivery 
structure, and give beneficiaries access to another segment of the 
health care delivery industry.
    Corporate services providers must be approved for Medicare payment, 
or when Medicare approval status is not required, be accredited by a 
qualified accreditation organization to gain provider authorization 
status under CHAMPUS. Corporate services providers must also enter into 
a participation agreement which will be sent out as part of the initial 
authorization process. The participation agreement will ensure that 
CHAMPUS determined allowable payments, combined with the cost-share/
copayment, deductible, and other health insurance amounts, will be 
accepted by the provider as payment in full.
    The Application for CHAMPUS-Provider Status: Corporate Services 
Provider, will collect the necessary information to ensure that the 
conditions are met for authorization as a CHAMPUS corporate services 
provider: i.e., the provider: (1) Is a corporation or a foundation, but 
not a professional corporation or professional association; (2) 
provides services and related supplies of a type rendered by CHAMPUS 
individual professional providers or diagnostic technical services; (3) 
is approved for Medicare payment or when Medicare approval status is 
not required, is accredited by a qualified accreditation organization; 
and (4) has entered into a participation agreement approved by the 
Director, OCHAMPUS or a designee.
    The collected information will be used by CHAMPUS contractors to 
process claims and verify authorized provider status. Verification 
involves collecting and reviewing copies of the provider's licenses, 
certificates, accreditation documents, etc. If the criteria are met, 
the provider is granted CHAMPUS-authorization status. The documentation 
and information are collected when: (1) A provider requests permission 
to become a CHAMPUS-authorized provider; (2) a claim is filed for care 
received from a provider who is not listed on the contractors' computer 
listing of authorized providers; or (3) when a former CHAMPUS-
authorized provider requests reinstatement. The contractors develop the 
forms used to gather information based on CHAMPUS' conditions for 
participation listed above. Without the collection of this information, 
contractors cannot determine if the provider meets CHAMPUS' 
authorization requirements for corporate services providers. If the 
contractor is unable to verify that a provider meets these 
authorization requirements, the contractor may not reimburse either the 
provider or the beneficiary for the provider's health care services.
    To reduce the reporting burden to a minimum, CHAMPUS has carefully 
selected the information requested from respondents. Only that 
information which has been deemed absolutely essential is being 
requested. If necessary, contractors may verify

[[Page 40883]]

credentials with Medicare, JCAHO and other national organizations by 
telephone. CHAMPUS is also participating with Medicare in the 
development of a National Provider System which will eliminate 
duplication of provider certification data collection among federal 
government agencies.
    CHAMPUS contractors are required to maintain a computer listing of 
all providers that have submitted the appropriate authorization 
information and documentation. To avoid duplicate inquiries, the 
contractors must search the computer provider listing before requesting 
documentation from providers. Since the providers affected by this 
information collection generally have not previously been eligible to 
be authorized providers, CHAMPUS contractors will have no information 
on file. The providers will have to submit the information requested on 
the data collection form (Application for CHAMPUS-Provider Status: 
Corporate Services Provider) in order to obtain provider authorization 
status under CHAMPUS.
    The information will usually be collected from each respondent only 
once. It is estimated that there will be approximately 3,000 applicants 
over an initial 3 year collection period or 1,000 respondents per year. 
After the initial three years of collection, it is estimated that 
annual number of respondents will decline to less than 100. CHAMPUS 
will request the provider authorization documentation and information 
when the provider asks to become CHAMPUS-authorized or when a claim is 
filed for a new provider's services. If after a provider has been 
authorized by a contractor, no claims are filed during a two-year 
period of time, the provider's information will be placed in the 
inactive file. To reactivate a file, the provider must verify that the 
information is still correct, or supply new or changed information. The 
total first year reporting burden is estimated to be 333\1/3\ hours.

    Dated: July 20, 1998.

L.M. Bynum,
Alternate OSD Federal Register Liaison Officer, Department of Defense.
[FR Doc. 98-20421 Filed 7-30-98; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 5000-04-U