9286 Federal Register / Vol. 90, No. 27 / Tuesday, February 11, 2025 / Rules and Regulations 

(1) Alternative Methods of Compliance 

(AMOCs): The Manager, International 

Validation Branch, FAA, has the authority to 

approve AMOCs for this AD, if requested 

using the procedures found in 14 CFR 39.19. 

In accordance with 14 CFR 39.19, send your 

request to your principal inspector or 

responsible Flight Standards Office, as 

appropriate. If sending information directly 

to the manager of the International Validation 

Branch, mail it to the address identified in 

paragraph (j) of this AD. Information may be 

emailed to: AMOC@faa.gov. Before using any 

approved AMOC, notify your appropriate 

principal inspector, or lacking a principal 

inspector, the manager of the responsible 

Flight Standards Office. 

(2) Contacting the Manufacturer: For any 

requirement in this AD to obtain instructions 

from a manufacturer, the instructions must 

be accomplished using a method approved 

by the Manager, International Validation 

Branch, FAA; or ANAC; or ANAC’s 

authorized Designee. If approved by the 

ANAC Designee, the approval must include 

the Designee’s authorized signature. 

(j) Additional Information 

For more information about this AD, 

contact Hassan Ibrahim, Aviation Safety 

Engineer, FAA, 1600 Stewart Avenue, Suite 

410, Westbury, NY 11590; phone: 206–231– 

3653; email: Hassan.M.Ibrahim@faa.gov. 

(k) Material Incorporated by Reference 

(1) The Director of the Federal Register 

approved the incorporation by reference 

(IBR) of the material listed in this paragraph 

under 5 U.S.C. 552(a) and 1 CFR part 51. 

(2) You must use this material as 

applicable to do the actions required by this 

AD, unless this AD specifies otherwise. 

(i) Ageˆncia Nacional de Aviac ̧a ̃o Civil 

(ANAC) AD 2024–04–02R01, effective May 

31, 2024. 

(ii) [Reserved] 

(3) For ANAC material identified in this 

AD, contact ANAC, Aeronautical Products 

Certification Branch (GGCP), Rua Dr. Orlando 

Feirabend Filho, 230—Centro Empresarial 

Aquarius—Torre B—Andares 14 a 18, Parque 

Residencial Aquarius, CEP 12.246–190—Sa ̃o 

Jose ́ dos Campos—SP, Brazil; phone 55 (12) 

3203–6600; email pac@anac.gov.br; website 

anac.gov.br/en/. You may find this ANAC 

AD on the ANAC website 

sistemas.anac.gov.br/certificacao/DA/ 

DAE.asp. 

(4) You may view this material at the FAA, 

Airworthiness Products Section, Operational 

Safety Branch, 2200 South 216th Street, Des 

Moines, WA. For information on the 

availability of this material at the FAA, call 

206–231–3195. 

(5) You may view this material at the 

National Archives and Records 

Administration (NARA). For information on 

the availability of this material at NARA, 

visit www.archives.gov/federal-register/cfr/ 

ibr-locations, or email fr.inspection@

nara.gov. 

Issued on January 23, 2025. 

Steven W. Thompson, 

Acting Deputy Director, Compliance & 

Airworthiness Division, Aircraft Certification 

Service. 

[FR Doc. 2025–02400 Filed 2–10–25; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 4910–13–P 

DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION 

Federal Aviation Administration 

14 CFR Part 39 

[Docket No. FAA–2025–0198; Project 

Identifier MCAI–2024–00762–T; Amendment 

39–22956; AD 2025–03–08] 

RIN 2120–AA64 

Airworthiness Directives; Airbus SAS 

Airplanes 

AGENCY: Federal Aviation 

Administration (FAA), DOT. 

ACTION: Final rule; request for 

comments. 

SUMMARY: The FAA is adopting a new 

airworthiness directive (AD) for all 

Airbus SAS Model A318, A319, A320, 

and A321 series airplanes; Model A330– 

200, –200 Freighter, –300, –800, and 

–900 series airplanes; and Model A340– 

200, –300, –500, and –600 series 

airplanes. This AD was prompted by 

reports of trimmable horizontal 

stabilizer actuators (THSAs) being 

delivered to operators having erroneous 

information (accumulated life) in the 

authorized release certificate. This AD 

requires contacting Collins Aerospace 

for amended authorized release 

certificates for the affected parts and 

replacing the affected parts if necessary, 

and prohibits the installation of affected 

parts, as specified in a European Union 

Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) AD, 

which is incorporated by reference. The 

FAA is issuing this AD to address the 

unsafe condition on these products. 

DATES: This AD is effective February 26, 

2025. 

The Director of the Federal Register 

approved the incorporation by reference 

of certain publications listed in this AD 

as of February 26, 2025. 

The FAA must receive comments on 

this AD by March 28, 2025. 

ADDRESSES: You may send comments, 

using the procedures found in 14 CFR 

11.43 and 11.45, by any of the following 

methods: 

• Federal eRulemaking Portal: Go to 

regulations.gov. Follow the instructions 

for submitting comments. 

• Fax: 202–493–2251. 

• Mail: U.S. Department of 

Transportation, Docket Operations, M– 

30, West Building Ground Floor, Room 

W12–140, 1200 New Jersey Avenue SE, 

Washington, DC 20590. 

• Hand Delivery: Deliver to Mail 

address above between 9 a.m. and 5 

p.m., Monday through Friday, except 

Federal holidays. 

AD Docket: You may examine the AD 

docket at regulations.gov under Docket 

No. FAA–2025–0198; or in person at 

Docket Operations between 9 a.m. and 

5 p.m., Monday through Friday, except 

Federal holidays. The AD docket 

contains this final rule, the mandatory 

continuing airworthiness information 

(MCAI), any comments received, and 

other information. The street address for 

Docket Operations is listed above. 

Material Incorporated by Reference: 

• For EASA material identified in this 

AD, contact EASA, Konrad-AdenauerUfer 3, 50668 Cologne, Germany; 

telephone +49 221 8999 000; email 

ADs@easa.europa.eu; website 

easa.europa.eu. You may find this 

material on the EASA website at 

ad.easa.europa.eu. 

• For Collins Aerospace material 

identified in this AD, contact Collins 

Aerospace, Product Support Department 

13, Avenue de L’Eguillette—Saint-Ouen 

L’Aumone, Boite Postale 7186 95056 

Cergy Pontoise Cedex, France; 

telephone 1–877–808–7575; email crc@

collins.com; website https://www.collins

aerospace.com/support. 

• You may view this material at the 

FAA, Airworthiness Products Section, 

Operational Safety Branch, 2200 South 

216th St., Des Moines, WA. For 

information on the availability of this 

material at the FAA, call 206–231–3195. 

It is also available at regulations.gov 

under Docket No. FAA–2025–0198. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Timothy Dowling, Aviation Safety 

Engineer, FAA, 2200 South 216th St., 

Des Moines, WA 98198; phone 206– 

231–3667; email timothy.p.dowling@

faa.gov. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

Comments Invited 

The FAA invites you to send any 

written data, views, or arguments about 

this final rule. Send your comments to 

an address listed under the ADDRESSES

section. Include ‘‘Docket No. FAA– 

2025–0198; Project Identifier MCAI– 

2024–00762–T’’ at the beginning of your 

comments. The most helpful comments 

reference a specific portion of the final 

rule, explain the reason for any 

recommended change, and include 

supporting data. The FAA will consider 

all comments received by the closing 

date and may amend this final rule 

because of those comments. 


KHAMMOND on DSK9W7S144PROD with RULES
Federal Register / Vol. 90, No. 27 / Tuesday, February 11, 2025 / Rules and Regulations 9287 

Except for Confidential Business 

Information (CBI) as described in the 

following paragraph, and other 

information as described in 14 CFR 

11.35, the FAA will post all comments 

received, without change, to 

regulations.gov, including any personal 

information you provide. The agency 

will also post a report summarizing each 

substantive verbal contact received 

about this final rule. 

Confidential Business Information 

CBI is commercial or financial 

information that is both customarily and 

actually treated as private by its owner. 

Under the Freedom of Information Act 

(FOIA) (5 U.S.C. 552), CBI is exempt 

from public disclosure. If your 

comments responsive to this AD contain 

commercial or financial information 

that is customarily treated as private, 

that you actually treat as private, and 

that is relevant or responsive to this AD, 

it is important that you clearly designate 

the submitted comments as CBI. Please 

mark each page of your submission 

containing CBI as ‘‘PROPIN.’’ The FAA 

will treat such marked submissions as 

confidential under the FOIA, and they 

will not be placed in the public docket 

of this AD. Submissions containing CBI 

should be sent to Timothy Dowling, 

Aviation Safety Engineer, FAA, 2200 

South 216th St., Des Moines, WA 98198; 

phone 206–231–3667; email 

timothy.p.dowling@faa.gov. Any 

commentary that the FAA receives 

which is not specifically designated as 

CBI will be placed in the public docket 

for this rulemaking. 

Background 

EASA, which is the Technical Agent 

for the Member States of the European 

Union, has issued EASA AD 2024–0247, 

dated December 18, 2024 (EASA AD 

2024–0247) (also referred to as the 

MCAI), to correct an unsafe condition 

for all Airbus SAS Model A318 and 

A319 series airplanes; Model A320–211, 

212, –214, –215, –216, –231, –232, –233, 

–251N, –252N, –253N, –271N, –272N, 

and –273N airplanes; Model A321 series 

airplanes; Model A330–201, –202, –203, 

–223, –243, –223F, –243F, –301, –302, 

–303, –321, –322, –323, –341, –342, 

–343, –743L, –841, and –941 airplanes; 

and Model A340–211, –212, –213, –311, 

–312, –313, –541, –542, –642, and –643 

airplanes. Model A320–215, A330– 

743L, A340–542, and A340–643 

airplanes are not certificated by the FAA 

and are not included on the U.S. type 

certificate data sheet; this AD therefore 

does not include those airplanes in the 

applicability. The MCAI states that 

occurrences were reported of THSAs 

delivered to operators having erroneous 

information (accumulated life) in the 

authorized release certificates. These 

THSAs were released to service between 

2014 and 2024 at some Collins 

Aerospace Maintenance, Repair, and 

Overhaul (MRO) facilities where the 

THSA screw jack assemblies were 

replaced with parts having higher 

cumulative operating life than was 

documented on the authorized release 

certificates. 

The FAA is issuing this AD to address 

erroneous accumulated life information 

in the THSA release certificate, which 

could lead to operation of the THSA 

beyond the certificated life limit; 

operation of the THSA beyond the 

certificated life limit could result in 

failure of the THSA and consequent 

reduced controllability of the airplane. 

You may examine the MCAI in the 

AD docket at regulations.gov under 

Docket No. FAA–2025–0198. 

Material Incorporated by Reference 

Under 1 CFR Part 51 

EASA AD 2024–0247 specifies 

procedures for contacting Collins 

Aerospace for approved instructions for 

obtaining amended authorized release 

certificates, which will allow operators 

to correctly manage the maintenance 

consequences of erroneous accumulated 

life values and ensure compliance with 

ADs and required airworthiness 

limitations (Airworthiness Limitations 

Section (ALS) Part 4). EASA AD 2024– 

0247 also specifies procedures for 

replacement of affected THSAs and 

prohibits the installation of affected 

THSAs. 

This AD also requires Collins 

Aerospace Vendor Service Information 

Letter FA3T1–27–04, dated August 6, 

2024, which provides a list of affected 

THSAs that were repaired at Collins 

Aerospace MRO facilities between 2014 

and 2024 and released with incorrect 

authorized release certificates 

containing erroneous accumulated life 

values. 

This material is reasonably available 

because the interested parties have 

access to it through their normal course 

of business or by the means identified 

in the ADDRESSES section. 

FAA’s Determination 

This product has been approved by 

the aviation authority of another 

country and is approved for operation in 

the United States. Pursuant to the FAA’s 

bilateral agreement with this State of 

Design Authority, it has notified the 

FAA of the unsafe condition described 

in the MCAI and material referenced 

above. The FAA is issuing this AD after 

determining that the unsafe condition 

described previously is likely to exist or 

develop on other products of the same 

type design. 

Requirements of This AD 

This AD requires accomplishing the 

actions specified in the material 

described previously, except for any 

differences identified as exceptions in 

the regulatory text of this AD. 

Explanation of Required Compliance 

Information 

In the FAA’s ongoing efforts to 

improve the efficiency of the AD 

process, the FAA developed a process to 

use some civil aviation authority (CAA) 

ADs as the primary source of 

information for compliance with 

requirements for corresponding FAA 

ADs. The FAA has been coordinating 

this process with manufacturers and 

CAAs. As a result, EASA AD 2024–0247 

is incorporated by reference in this AD. 

This AD requires compliance with 

EASA AD 2024–0247 in its entirety 

through that incorporation, except for 

any differences identified as exceptions 

in the regulatory text of this AD. Using 

common terms that are the same as the 

heading of a particular section in EASA 

AD 2024–0247 does not mean that 

operators need comply only with that 

section. For example, where the AD 

requirement refers to ‘‘all required 

actions and compliance times,’’ 

compliance with this AD requirement is 

not limited to the section titled 

‘‘Required Action(s) and Compliance 

Time(s)’’ in EASA AD 2024–0247. 

Material required by EASA AD 2024– 

0247 for compliance will be available at 

regulations.gov under Docket No. FAA– 

2025–0198 after this AD is published. 

Justification for Immediate Adoption 

and Determination of the Effective Date 

Section 553(b) of the Administrative 

Procedure Act (APA) (5 U.S.C. 551 et 

seq.) authorizes agencies to dispense 

with notice and comment procedures 

for rules when the agency, for ‘‘good 

cause,’’ finds that those procedures are 

‘‘impracticable, unnecessary, or contrary 

to the public interest.’’ Under this 

section, an agency, upon finding good 

cause, may issue a final rule without 

providing notice and seeking comment 

prior to issuance. Further, section 

553(d) of the APA authorizes agencies to 

make rules effective in less than thirty 

days, upon a finding of good cause. 

An unsafe condition exists that 

requires the immediate adoption of this 

AD without providing an opportunity 

for public comments prior to adoption. 

The FAA has found that the risk to the 

flying public justifies forgoing notice 

and comment prior to adoption of this 

rule because erroneous accumulated life 


KHAMMOND on DSK9W7S144PROD with RULES
9288 Federal Register / Vol. 90, No. 27 / Tuesday, February 11, 2025 / Rules and Regulations 

values could significantly affect the 

operator’s ability to accurately manage 

compliance with ADs and ALS Part 4 

(airworthiness limitations) and cause 

operation of the THSA beyond the 

certificated life limit, which could result 

in failure of the THSA and consequent 

reduced controllability of the airplane. 

Accordingly, notice and opportunity for 

prior public comment are impracticable 

and contrary to the public interest 

pursuant to 5 U.S.C. 553(b). 

In addition, the FAA finds that good 

cause exists pursuant to 5 U.S.C. 553(d) 

for making this amendment effective in 

less than 30 days, for the same reasons 

the FAA found good cause to forgo 

notice and comment. 

Regulatory Flexibility Act (RFA) 

The requirements of the RFA do not 

apply when an agency finds good cause 

pursuant to 5 U.S.C. 553 to adopt a rule 

without prior notice and comment. 

Because the FAA has determined that it 

has good cause to adopt this rule 

without notice and comment, RFA 

analysis is not required. 

Costs of Compliance 

The FAA estimates that this AD 

affects 2,087 airplanes of U.S. registry. 

The FAA estimates the following costs 

to comply with this AD: 

ESTIMATED COSTS FOR REQUIRED ACTIONS

Labor cost Parts cost Cost per product Cost on U.S. operators 

1 work-hour × $85 per hour = $85 .............................................................. $0 $85 $177,395 

The FAA has received no definitive 

data that would enable the agency to 

provide cost estimates for the oncondition replacement specified in this 

AD. 

Authority for This Rulemaking 

Title 49 of the United States Code 

specifies the FAA’s authority to issue 

rules on aviation safety. Subtitle I, 

section 106, describes the authority of 

the FAA Administrator. Subtitle VII: 

Aviation Programs, describes in more 

detail the scope of the Agency’s 

authority. 

The FAA is issuing this rulemaking 

under the authority described in 

Subtitle VII, Part A, Subpart III, Section 

44701: General requirements. Under 

that section, Congress charges the FAA 

with promoting safe flight of civil 

aircraft in air commerce by prescribing 

regulations for practices, methods, and 

procedures the Administrator finds 

necessary for safety in air commerce. 

This regulation is within the scope of 

that authority because it addresses an 

unsafe condition that is likely to exist or 

develop on products identified in this 

rulemaking action. 

Regulatory Findings 

This AD will not have federalism 

implications under Executive Order 

13132. This AD will not have a 

substantial direct effect on the States, on 

the relationship between the national 

government and the States, or on the 

distribution of power and 

responsibilities among the various 

levels of government. 

For the reasons discussed above, I 

certify that this AD: 

(1) Is not a ‘‘significant regulatory 

action’’ under Executive Order 12866, 

and 

(2) Will not affect intrastate aviation 

in Alaska. 

List of Subjects in 14 CFR Part 39 

Air transportation, Aircraft, Aviation 

safety, Incorporation by reference, 

Safety. 

The Amendment 

Accordingly, under the authority 

delegated to me by the Administrator, 

the FAA amends 14 CFR part 39 as 

follows: 

PART 39—AIRWORTHINESS 

DIRECTIVES 

■ 1. The authority citation for part 39 

continues to read as follows: 

Authority: 49 U.S.C. 106(g), 40113, 44701. 

§ 39.13 [Amended] 

■ 2. The FAA amends § 39.13 by adding 

the following new airworthiness 

directive: 

2025–03–08 Airbus SAS: Amendment 39– 

22956; Docket No. FAA–2025–0198; 

Project Identifier MCAI–2024–00762–T. 

(a) Effective Date 

This airworthiness directive (AD) is 

effective February 26, 2025. 

(b) Affected ADs 

None. 

(c) Applicability 

This AD applies to all Airbus SAS Model 

airplanes, certificated in any category, as 

identified in paragraphs (c)(1) through (6) of 

this AD. 

(1) Airbus SAS Model A318–111, –112, 

–121, and –122 airplanes. 

(2) Airbus SAS Model A319–111, –112, 

–113, –114, –115, –131, –132, –133, –151N, 

–153N, –171N, and –173N airplanes. 

(3) Airbus SAS Model A320–211, –212, 

–214, –216, –231, –232, –233, –251N, –252N, 

–253N, –271N, –272N, and –273N airplanes. 

(4) Airbus SAS Model A321–111, –112, 

–131, –211, –212, –213, –231, –232, –251N, 

–252N, –253N, –271N, –272N, –251NX, 

–252NX, –253NX, –253NY, –271NX, and 

–272NX airplanes. 

(5) Airbus SAS Model A330–201, –202, 

–203, –223, –243, –223F, –243F, –301, –302, 

–303, –321, –322, –323, –341, –342, –343, 

–841, and –941 airplanes. 

(6) Airbus SAS Model A340–211, –212, 

–213, –311, –312, –313, –541, and –642 

airplanes. 

(d) Subject 

Air Transport Association (ATA) of 

America Code 27, Flight Controls. 

(e) Unsafe Condition 

This AD was prompted by reports of 

trimmable horizontal stabilizer actuators 

(THSAs) being delivered to operators having 

erroneous information (accumulated life) in 

the authorized release certificate. The FAA is 

issuing this AD to address erroneous 

accumulated life information in the THSA 

release certificate, which could lead to 

operation of the THSA beyond the 

certificated life limit; operation of the THSA 

beyond the certificated life limit could result 

in failure of the THSA and consequent 

reduced controllability of the airplane. 

(f) Compliance 

Comply with this AD within the 

compliance times specified, unless already 

done. 

(g) Requirements 

Except as specified in paragraph (h) of this 

AD: Comply with all required actions and 

compliance times specified in, and in 

accordance with, EASA AD 2024–0247, 

dated December 18, 2024 (EASA AD 2024– 

0247). 

(h) Exceptions to EASA AD 2024–0247 

(1) Where EASA AD 2024–0247 refers to its 

effective date, this AD requires using the 

effective date of this AD. 

(2) Where EASA AD 2024–0247 defines a 

serviceable part as ‘‘A THSA eligible for 

installation in accordance with Airbus 

instructions,’’ this AD requires replacing that 

text with ‘‘A THSA eligible for installation.’’ 

(3) Where EASA AD 2024–0247 defines 

‘‘the VSIL,’’ for this AD, operators must use 

Collins Aerospace Vendor Service 

Information Letter FA3T1–27–04, dated 

August 6, 2024. 


KHAMMOND on DSK9W7S144PROD with RULES
Federal Register / Vol. 90, No. 27 / Tuesday, February 11, 2025 / Rules and Regulations 9289 

(4) This AD requires replacing Note 1 of 

EASA AD 2024–0247 with ‘‘If no approved 

instructions are provided within the 

compliance time of paragraph (1) of this AD, 

paragraph (2) of this AD must be 

accomplished before further flight. The 

affected part is eligible to be considered a 

serviceable part based on the content of the 

Collins Aerospace approved instructions, 

once received and accomplished, as required 

in paragraph (1) of this AD.’’ 

(5) This AD does not adopt the ‘‘Remarks’’ 

section of EASA AD 2024–0247. 

(i) Additional AD Provisions 

The following provisions also apply to this 

AD: 

(1) Alternative Methods of Compliance 

(AMOCs): The Manager, AIR–520, Continued 

Operational Safety Branch, FAA, has the 

authority to approve AMOCs for this AD, if 

requested using the procedures found in 14 

CFR 39.19. In accordance with 14 CFR 39.19, 

send your request to your principal inspector 

or responsible Flight Standards Office, as 

appropriate. If sending information directly 

to the manager of the Continued Operational 

Safety Branch, send it to the attention of the 

person identified in paragraph (j) of this AD 

and email to: AMOC@faa.gov. Before using 

any approved AMOC, notify your appropriate 

principal inspector, or lacking a principal 

inspector, the manager of the responsible 

Flight Standards Office. 

(2) Contacting the Manufacturer: For any 

requirement in this AD to obtain instructions 

from a manufacturer, the instructions must 

be accomplished using a method approved 

by the Manager, AIR–520, Continued 

Operational Safety Branch, FAA; or EASA; or 

Airbus SAS’s EASA Design Organization 

Approval (DOA). If approved by the DOA, 

the approval must include the DOAauthorized signature. 

(j) Additional Information 

For more information about this AD, 

contact Timothy Dowling, Aviation Safety 

Engineer, FAA, 2200 South 216th St., Des 

Moines, WA 98198; phone 206–231–3667; 

email timothy.p.dowling@faa.gov. 

(k) Material Incorporated by Reference 

(1) The Director of the Federal Register 

approved the incorporation by reference of 

the material listed in this paragraph under 5 

U.S.C. 552(a) and 1 CFR part 51. 

(2) You must use this material as 

applicable to do the actions required by this 

AD, unless this AD specifies otherwise. 

(i) European Union Aviation Safety Agency 

(EASA) AD 2024–0247, dated December 18, 

2024. 

(ii) Collins Aerospace Vendor Service 

Information Letter FA3T1–27–04, dated 

August 6, 2024. 

(3) For EASA material identified in this 

AD, contact EASA, Konrad-Adenauer-Ufer 3, 

50668 Cologne, Germany; telephone +49 221 

8999 000; email ADs@easa.europa.eu; 

website easa.europa.eu. You may find this 

material on the EASA website at 

ad.easa.europa.eu. 

(4) For Collins Aerospace material 

identified in this AD, contact Collins 

Aerospace, Customer Support Center, 2730 

West Tyvola Road, Charlotte, NC 28217; 

telephone 860–654–2500; email 

publications@collins.com; website 

customers.collinsaerospace.com. 

(5) You may view this material at the FAA, 

Airworthiness Products Section, Operational 

Safety Branch, 2200 South 216th St., Des 

Moines, WA. For information on the 

availability of this material at the FAA, call 

206–231–3195. 

(6) You may view this material at the 

National Archives and Records 

Administration (NARA). For information on 

the availability of this material at NARA, 

visit www.archives.gov/federal-register/cfr/ 

ibr-locations or email fr.inspection@nara.gov. 

Issued on February 4, 2025. 

Peter A. White, 

Deputy Director, Integrated Certificate 

Management Division, Aircraft Certification 

Service. 

[FR Doc. 2025–02494 Filed 2–7–25; 11:15 am] 

BILLING CODE 4910–13–P 

DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND 

HUMAN SERVICES 

Office of the Secretary 

45 CFR Part 162 

[CMS–0056–F2] 

RIN 0938–AU19 

Administrative Simplification: 

Modifications of Health Insurance 

Portability and Accountability Act of 

1996 (HIPAA) National Council for 

Prescription Drug Programs (NCPDP) 

Retail Pharmacy Standards; and 

Modification of the Medicaid Pharmacy 

Subrogation Standard; Delay of 

Effective Date 

AGENCY: Office of the Secretary, 

Department of Health and Human 

Services (HHS). 

ACTION: Final rule; delay of effective 

date. 

SUMMARY: In accordance with the 

Presidential memorandum of January 

20, 2025, titled ‘‘Regulatory Freeze 

Pending Review,’’ the effective date of 

the final rule titled ‘‘Administrative 

Simplification: Modifications of Health 

Insurance Portability and 

Accountability Act of 1996 (HIPAA) 

National Council for Prescription Drug 

Programs (NCPDP) Retail Pharmacy 

Standards; and Modification of the 

Medicaid Pharmacy Subrogation 

Standard’’ is delayed until April 14, 

2025. That final rule adopted updated 

versions of the retail pharmacy 

standards for electronic transactions 

adopted under the Administrative 

Simplification subtitle of HIPAA, which 

constitute modifications to the adopted 

standards for the following retail 

pharmacy transactions: health care 

claims or equivalent encounter 

information; eligibility for a health plan; 

referral certification and authorization; 

and coordination of benefits. It also 

adopted a modification to the standard 

for the Medicaid pharmacy subrogation 

transaction. 

DATES: 

Effective date: The final rule titled 

‘‘Administrative Simplification: 

Modifications of Health Insurance 

Portability and Accountability Act of 

1996 (HIPAA) National Council for 

Prescription Drug Programs (NCPDP) 

Retail Pharmacy Standards; and 

Modification of the Medicaid Pharmacy 

Subrogation Standard,’’ which appeared 

in the December 13, 2024, Federal 

Register (89 FR 100763) is delayed to 

April 14, 2025. The incorporation by 

reference of certain publications 

adopted in the rule and approved by the 

Director of the Federal Register is also 

delayed to April 14, 2025. 

Compliance Date: The compliance 

dates are extended to April 14, 2028. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Geanelle G. Herring, (410) 786–4466. 

Christopher S. Wilson, (410) 786–3178. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Under 5 

U.S.C. 553(b) of the Administrative 

Procedure Act (APA), the agency is 

required to publish a notice of proposed 

rulemaking in the Federal Register 

before the provisions of a rule take 

effect. In addition, section 553(d) of the 

APA mandates a 30-day delay in the 

effective date after issuance or 

publication of a rule. However, to the 

extent that 5 U.S.C. 553 applies to this 

action, it is exempt from such 

requirements because it constitutes a 

rule of procedure under 5 U.S.C. 

553(b)(A). 

Alternatively, HHS’s implementation 

of this action without opportunity for 

public comment, effective immediately, 

is based on the good cause exceptions 

in 5 U.S.C. 553(b)(B) and (d)(3). Seeking 

public comment is impracticable, 

unnecessary, and contrary to the public 

interest. The temporary delay in the 

effective date until April 14, 2025, is 

necessary to give agency officials the 

opportunity for further review and 

consideration of the new regulation, 

consistent with the memorandum 

described previously. Given the 

imminence of the effective date and the 

brief length of the extension of the 

effective date, seeking prior public 

comment on this temporary delay 

would have been impracticable, as well 

as contrary to the public interest in the 

orderly promulgation and 

implementation of regulations. HHS 

also believes that affected entities need 


KHAMMOND on DSK9W7S144PROD with RULES