Federal Register / Vol. 87, No. 134 / Thursday, July 14, 2022 / Proposed Rules 42137 

Section, at (617) 918–1303, before 

visiting the Region 1 office. Interested 

persons wanting to examine these 

documents should make an 

appointment with the office at least two 

weeks in advance. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Joan 

Coyle, RCRA Waste Management, UST, 

and Pesticides Section, U.S. 

Environmental Protection Agency, 

Region 1, 5 Post Office Square, Boston, 

MA 02109–3912; (617) 918–1303; 

coyle.joan@epa.gov. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: For 

additional information, see the direct 

final rule published in the ‘‘Rules and 

Regulations’’ section of this issue of the 

Federal Register. 

Authority: This rulemaking is issued under 

the authority of Sections 2002(a), 9004, and 

7004(b) of the Solid Waste Disposal Act, as 

amended, 42 U.S.C. 6912, 6991c, 6991d, and 

6991e. 

Dated: June 30, 2022. 

David W. Cash, 

Regional Administrator, EPA Region 1. 

[FR Doc. 2022–15066 Filed 7–13–22; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 6560–50–P 

DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND 

HUMAN SERVICES 

Centers for Medicare & Medicaid 

Services 

42 CFR Part 410, 482, 483, 485, 488 

[CMS–3347–RCN] 

RIN 0938–AT36 

Medicare and Medicaid Program; 

Requirements for Long-Term Care 

Facilities: Regulatory Provisions To 

Promote Efficiency, and Transparency 

Final Rule 

AGENCY: Centers for Medicare & 

Medicaid Services (CMS), Department 

of Health and Human Services (HHS). 

ACTION: Extension of timeline. 

SUMMARY: The Social Security Act (the 

Act) specifies that a Medicare final rule 

must be published no later than 3 years 

after the publication date of the 

proposed rule or interim final rule, as 

applicable, except under exceptional 

circumstances. In accordance with the 

Act, this document announces an 

extension of the timeline for publication 

of the final rule and includes a brief 

explanation of the justification for the 

variation. 

DATES: As of July 14, 2022, the timeline 

for publication of the final rule to 

finalize the provisions of the proposed 

rule published on July 18, 2019 (84 FR 

34737), is extended until July 18, 2023. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Ronisha Blackstone, CMS, (410) 786– 

6682. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: On July 

18, 2019, we published a proposed rule 

in the Federal Register entitled 

‘‘Medicare and Medicaid Programs; 

Requirements for Long-Term Care (LTC) 

Facilities: Provisions to Promote 

Efficiency and Transparency’’ (84 FR 

34737), which would revise the 

Medicare and Medicaid long-term care 

facility requirements that the Centers for 

Medicare & Medicaid Services had 

identified as unnecessary, obsolete, or 

excessively burdensome. This proposed 

rule aimed to increase the ability of 

health care professionals to apportion 

resources to improve resident care by 

eliminating or reducing requirements 

that could impede quality care or that 

divert resources away from providing 

high quality care. 

Section 1871(a)(3)(B) of the Social 

Security Act (the Act) requires the 

Secretary of the Department of Health 

and Human Services (the Secretary) to 

publish a Medicare final rule no later 

than 3 years after the publication date 

of the proposed rule or interim final 

rule, as applicable, except under 

exceptional circumstances. 

In such circumstances, the Secretary 

may vary the final rule publication 

timeline if the Secretary publishes a 

Federal Register notice of the different 

timeline, including a brief explanation 

of the justification for the variation, by 

no later than the previously established 

timeline. To meet the 3-year timeline, 

the final rule would have to be 

published by July 18, 2022. For the 

reasons discussed below, we are unable 

to publish the final rule by July 18, 

2022. 

Since the beginning of the COVID–19 

Public Health Emergency (PHE), we 

have prioritized our efforts to address 

the immediate needs relevant to the 

COVID–19 pandemic by issuing 

appropriate regulatory changes to 

increase public health and safety, while 

taking into consideration ways to create 

flexibility and minimize unnecessary 

regulatory burdens. These efforts have 

required considerable focus and 

resources, especially to prioritize the 

publication of interim final rules 

relevant to the PHE and to provide 

guidance to health care facilities. In 

response to the proposed rule, we 

received over 1,500 timely comments 

from a variety of stakeholders. The 

commenters presented robust policy 

and technical issues for our 

consideration, which require extensive 

consultation and analysis. Likewise, we 

need to re-evaluate the policies and 

consider the comments provided in 

light of the current needs of residents, 

the impact of the COVID–19 PHE on 

long-term care facilities, and the current 

priorities of the Department of Health 

and Human Services related to health 

and safety and equity. 

Therefore, this notice extends the 

timeline to finalize the provisions in the 

June 18, 2022 proposed rule for 1 year, 

until July 18, 2023. 

Dated: July 11, 2022. 

Wilma Robinson, 

Deputy Executive Secretary to the 

Department, Department of Health and 

Human Services. 

[FR Doc. 2022–15081 Filed 7–13–22; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 4120–01–P 


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