55214 Federal Register / Vol. 72, No. 188 / Friday, September 28, 2007 / Notices 

either the United States or the FTC, 

alleging any violation of the order. 

The purpose of this analysis is to 

facilitate public comment on the 

proposed order. It is not intended to 

constitute an official interpretation of 

the proposed order or to modify in any 

way its terms. 

By direction of the Commission. 

Donald S. Clark, 

Secretary. 

[FR Doc. E7–19159 Filed 9–27–07: 8:45 am] 

Billing Code: 6750–01–S 

DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND 

HUMAN SERVICES 

National Institute for Occupational 

Safety and Health; Designation of a 

Class of Employees for Addition to the 

Special Exposure Cohort 

AGENCY: National Institute for 

Occupational Safety and Health 

(NIOSH), Department of Health and 

Human Services (HHS). 

ACTION: Notice. 

SUMMARY: The Department of Health and 

Human Services (HHS) gives notice of a 

decision to designate a class of 

employees at the Ames Laboratory, 

Ames, Iowa, as an addition to the 

Special Exposure Cohort (SEC) under 

the Energy Employees Occupational 

Illness Compensation Program Act of 

2000. On September 12, 2007, the 

Secretary of HHS designated the 

following class of employees as an 

addition to the SEC: 

Sheet metal workers, physical plant 

maintenance and associated support staff 

(including all maintenance shop personnel), 

and supervisory staff who were monitored or 

should have been monitored for potential 

internal radiation exposures associated with 

the maintenance and renovation activities of 

the thorium production areas in Wilhelm 

Hall (a.k.a. the Metallurgy Building or ‘‘Old’’

Metallurgy Building) at the Ames Laboratory 

from January 1, 1955, through December 31, 

1970, for a number of work days aggregating 

at least 250 work days or in combination 

with work days within the parameters 

established for one or more other classes of 

employees in the Special Exposure Cohort. 

This designation will become 

effective on October 12, 2007, unless 

Congress provides otherwise prior to the 

effective date. After this effective date, 

HHS will publish a notice in the 

Federal Register reporting the addition 

of this class to the SEC or the result of 

any provision by Congress regarding the 

decision by HHS to add the class to the 

SEC. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Larry Elliott, Director, Office of 

Compensation Analysis and Support, 

National Institute for Occupational 

Safety and Health (NIOSH), 4676 

Columbia Parkway, MS C–46, 

Cincinnati, OH 45226, Telephone 513–

533–6800 (this is not a toll-free 

number). Information requests can also 

be submitted by e-mail to 

OCAS@CDC.GOV. 

Dated: September 24, 2007. 

John Howard, 

Director, National Institute for Occupational 

Safety and Health. 

[FR Doc. E7–19297 Filed 9–27–07; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 4160–17–P 

DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND 

HUMAN SERVICES 

National Institute for Occupational 

Safety and Health; Designation of a 

Class of Employees for Addition to the 

Special Exposure Cohort 

AGENCY: National Institute for 

Occupational Safety and Health 

(NIOSH), Department of Health and 

Human Services (HHS). 

ACTION: Notice. 

SUMMARY: The Department of Health and 

Human Services (HHS) gives notice of a 

decision to designate a class of 

employees at the Hanford Engineer 

Works, Richland, Washington, as an 

addition to the Special Exposure Cohort 

(SEC) under the Energy Employees 

Occupational Illness Compensation 

Program Act of 2000. On September 12, 

2007, the Secretary of HHS designated 

the following class of employees as an 

addition to the SEC: 

Employees of the Department of Energy 

(DOE), its predecessor agencies, or DOE 

contractors or subcontractors who were 

monitored or should have been monitored for 

internal radiological exposures while 

working at the Hanford Engineer Works in: 

the 300 Area fuel fabrication and research 

facilities from October 1, 1943 through 

August 31, 1946; the 200 Area plutonium 

separation facilities from November 1, 1944 

through August 31, 1946; or the 100 B, D, and 

F reactor areas from September 1, 1944 

through August 31, 1946; for a number of 

work days aggregating at least 250 work days 

or in combination with work days within the 

parameters established for one or more other 

classes of employees in the Special Exposure 

Cohort. 

This designation will become effective 

on October 12, 2007, unless Congress 

provides otherwise prior to the effective 

date. After this effective date, HHS will 

publish a notice in the Federal Register 

reporting the addition of this class to the 

SEC or the result of any provision by 

Congress regarding the decision by HHS 

to add the class to the SEC. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Larry Elliott, Director, Office of 

Compensation Analysis and Support, 

National Institute for Occupational 

Safety and Health (NIOSH), 4676 

Columbia Parkway, MS C–46, 

Cincinnati, OH 45226, Telephone 513–

533–6800 (this is not a toll-free 

number). Information requests can also 

be submitted by e-mail to 

OCAS@CDC.GOV. 

Dated: September 24, 2007. 

John Howard, 

Director, National Institute for Occupational 

Safety and Health. 

[FR Doc. E7–19243 Filed 9–27–07; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 4160–17–P 

DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND 

HUMAN SERVICES 

Agency for Healthcare Research and 

Quality 

AHRQ Health Care Innovations 

Exchange 

AGENCY: Agency for Healthcare Research 

and Quality (AHRQ), HHS. 

ACTION: Notice of Submission of 

Innovations. 

SUMMARY: To support its objective of 

accelerating the diffusion and adoption 

of innovative health care delivery 

changes, the Agency for Healthcare 

Research and Quality (AHRQ) recently 

launched version 1.0 of the AHRQ 

Health Care Innovations Exchange 

(HCIE) Web site, http:// 

www.innovations.ahrq.gov. The HCIE is 

a new initiative designed to support 

health care professionals in sharing and 

adopting innovations that improve 

health care quality. Version 1.0 of the 

Web site is focused on stimulating 

creativity and innovation and will serve 

as a virtual place to which innovators 

will be encouraged to submit their 

innovations and experiences from 

which potential adopters can begin 

learning about the nuances of 

implementation. 

In Spring 2008, AHRQ will deploy 

version 2.0 of its Health Care 

Innovations Exchange site making 

hundreds of profiles of health care 

service innovations of varying degrees 

of novelty and scientific rigor accessible 

to the public. Version 2.0 will also offer 

expert commentary; stories; tools; 

lessons learned; ‘‘change packages’’—

sets of innovations implemented 

simultaneously; expanded content on 

implementation; and opportunities to 

learn and network. 

To build the database of innovations 

profiles, AHRQ invites submissions of 


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Federal Register / Vol. 72, No. 188 / Friday, September 28, 2007 / Notices 55215 

health service innovations to its Health 

Care Innovations Exchange. The AHRQ 

Health Care Innovations Exchange 

database will cover the broad spectrum 

of health care settings, systems, and 

providers. Public health priority 

diseases/conditions, priority 

populations, and efforts to reduce 

disparities in quality will be 

highlighted. 

The AHRQ Health Care Innovations 

Exchange is seeking a broad range of 

novel health care strategies, activities, 

and tools. AHRQ invites participation in 

its Health Care Innovations Exchange by 

submitting descriptions of innovative 

efforts to improve the delivery of health 

care services. 

DATES: There is no deadline for 

submission. It is a continuous 

submission and review process. 

Special Incentive To Submit 

AHRQ will provide early submitters 

(those who submit by January 15, 2008) 

and opportunity to preview and 

comment on version 2.0 of the Health 

Care Innovations Exchange Web site via 

a secure mechanism. In this preview, an 

opportunity will be given to browse and 

search the innovations profiled up to 

that point. 

ADDRESSES: Submit to 

info@innovations.ahrq.gov. 

How To Submit 

To submit a health care innovation for 

possible posting, send a description of 

the innovation that would include the 

health care setting and patient 

population it is our could be used for 

and any results that have been 

documented, to the Health Care 

Innovations Exchange at 

info@innovations.ahrq.gov. Please use 

the words ‘‘Innovation Submission’’ in 

the subject line. If you prefer, you can 

fax information about your innovation 

to 301–610–4950. You may also mail 

information to Mary Nix, Agency for 

Healthcare Research and Quality, Center 

for Outcomes and Evidence, 540 Gaither 

Road, Rockville, MD 20850. Detailed 

information on submitting can be 

obtained from the AHRQ Health Care 

Innovations Exchange Web page titled 

‘‘Share Your Innovations’’, http:// 

www.innovations.ahrq.gov/share/ 

share.aspx. 

Supporting documents may be sent 

with the submission. Once AHRQ has 

reviewed your submission and 

identified it as a priority item for 

posting, AHRQ will contact the 

submitter to discuss the details 

regarding what will be included in 

standardized postings. Copyright or 

other intellectual property issues, if any, 

will be addressed at that time. 

If the innovation is accepted for 

inclusion, AHRQ will develop a 

detailed profile and send it to the 

submitter to review for accuracy and 

completeness. The innovation will then 

be ready for publication in Version 2.0 

of the Health Care Innovations Exchange 

scheduled for public release in Spring 

2008. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Explore: http://www.innovations. 

ahrq.gov; And/Or Contact: Mary P. Nix, 

MS, MT(ASCP)SBB, Health Scientist 

Administrator, Agency for Healthcare 

Research and Quality, 540 Gaither Road, 

Rockville, MD 20850, phone: 301–427–

1624, e-mail: Mary.Nix@ahrq.hhs.gov. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

Inclusion Criteria 

To be considered for inclusion, health 

are innovations have to meet six criteria 

with respect to the nature of the activity, 

the level of documentation, and the 

participation of the innovator. These are 

minimum requirements. The ultimate 

decision to publish a detailed profile of 

an innovation (an Innovation Profile) 

will depend on several factors, 

including an evaluation by AHRQ, 

AHRQ’s priorities (see below), and the 

number of similar ideas in the Health 

Care Innovations Exchange. Innovations 

that do not qualify for an Innovation 

Profile may qualify as Innovation Briefs 

(short descriptions of intriguing 

activities that either do not meet the 

minimum requirements or are not 

regarded as high priority) or Innovation 

Attempts (descriptions of projects that 

did not succeed as planned). Criteria to 

be considered are: 

The innovation is a patient care services 

activity 

The innovation does not have to 

involve direct patient care or direct 

contact with health care consumers. 

However, it must have important 

implications for the delivery of patient 

care—whether preventative, emergent, 

chronic, acute, rehabilitative, long-term, 

or end-of-life. Innovations that are 

devices, tools, technology, software, 

curricula, policies, procedures, and 

changes to the physical environment 

will generally be excluded unless they 

are tied to a specific and associated 

change in the health care delivery 

process when implemented. 

The innovation intends to improve one 

or more domains of health care quality 

The innovation must be designed to 

address one or more specific measurable 

indicators of quality in one or more of 

the following domains: effectiveness, 

efficiency, equity, patient-centeredness, 

safety, and timeliness. The measurable 

quality indicators do not have to come 

from an established measure set, but 

they must be clearly defined and 

relevant to the quality issue the 

innovation addresses. In addition, the 

innovation must not contradict 

established standards of evidence-based 

care. 

There is reason to believe that the 

innovation will be effective 

Evidence that the innovation is likely 

to achieve its goals must be provided. 

Ideally, quantitative or qualitative 

support for a link between the 

innovation and improved performance 

on the defined quality indicator should 

be offered. However, if data are 

unavailable, limited, or lacking 

methodological rigor, the design or 

theoretical foundation of the innovative 

activity may serve as sufficient support. 

The activity is truly innovative in a 

given context 

For the purposes of the Health Care 

Innovation Exchange, innovations are 

activities that are generally perceived as 

new in a particular context or setting 

relative to the usual care processes. In 

addition to brand new ideas, this 

includes activities adapted from other 

industries to health care, transferred 

from one health care setting or market 

segment to another, drawn from settings 

in other countries, or applied to a new 

or different patient population. A 

description of how the innovation 

differs from what was regarded as 

standard practice in the setting in which 

it was implemented must be supplied. 

Information about the innovation is 

publicly available 

Innovators must be willing to make 

enough information freely available to 

enable a user of the Health Care 

Innovations Exchange to understand the 

elements of the innovation and, if 

desired, adopt the innovation. This 

requirement does not exclude 

innovations that incorporate 

commercial products or other materials 

for which there may be a fee or licensing 

requirements. It is not necessary for all 

information about the innovation to be 

publicly available, but AHRQ will need 

access to information with sufficient 

detail to produce a full profile. 

The innovator (or a representative) is 

willing and able to participate in the 

Health Care Innovations Exchange 

A knowledgeable contact person must 

be available as a resource for potential 

adopters of the innovation for at least 

one year. To minimize the burden on 

innovators, the Health Care Innovations 


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55216 Federal Register / Vol. 72, No. 188 / Friday, September 28, 2007 / Notices 

Exchange staff will facilitate 

communication among users and 

developers of innovations. However, the 

participation of the innovator is 

essential to the ability of the Health Care 

Innovations Exchange to foster and 

promote the diffusion of innovations 

through social learning, a central goal of 

this program. The level of participation 

can vary according to innovator interest 

and schedules. Innovators will be 

expected to respond to occasional 

inquiries and to join a Health Care 

Innovations Exchange community of 

practice related to the innovator’s 

particular innovation, so that ideas can 

be shared in an organized instructional 

fashion or setting. 

AHRQ’s Priorities 

• Specific populations. AHRQ is 

interested in identifying innovations 

that will help to reduce disparities in 

health care and health status. 

Populations of interest to AHRQ are 

low-income groups, minority groups, 

women, children, the elderly, and 

individuals with special health care 

needs. 

• Potential for high impact. The 

Health Care Innovations Exchange will 

give publication or dissemination 

priority to innovations that are likely to 

have a significant effect on the overall 

value of health care. Impact may be 

defined in different ways, e.g., the 

innovation may affect a broad 

population, address a critical health 

issue, or demonstrate large cost savings. 

• Innovator interest in participating. 

All else being equal, AHRQ will give 

priority to innovators who express a 

strong interest in becoming involved in 

other activities of the Health Care 

Innovations Exchange, such as 

participating in learning networks and 

providing commentaries. 

• AHRQ-funded innovations. The 

Health Care Innovations Exchange will 

aim to include effective innovations that 

are or were funded by the Agency. 

Dated: September 18, 2007. 

Carolyn M. Clancy, 

Director. 

[FR Doc. 07–4771 Filed 9–27–07; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 4160–90–M 

DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND 

HUMAN SERVICES 

Agency for Healthcare Research and 

Quality 

Availability of Draft Public Health 

Service (PHS) Clinical Practice 

Guideline Update on Treating Tobacco 

Use and Dependence 

AGENCY: Agency for Healthcare Research 

and Quality, HHS. 

ACTION: Notice for pre-publication 

review and comment. 

SUMMARY: The Agency for Healthcare 

Research and Quality (AHRQ) 

announces the availability of a draft 

Public Health Service clinical practice 

guideline Update on Treating Tobacco 

Use and Dependence for pre-publication 

review. This PHS guideline update is 

being produced by a multidisciplinary 

private-sector panel of experts convened 

by the agencies of the Public Health 

Service. The expert panel will not 

respond to individual comments but 

will consider all comments in 

determining revisions to the guideline. 

DATES: Comments must be postmarked 

by October 26, 2007. 

Request for Draft PHS Guideline 

Update 

To receive a copy of the draft 

guideline update, requests must 

include: Requester’s name; Affiliation 

(business or organization); Address 

(including zip code); Telephone and Fax 

numbers. This is a draft document. 

Since changes are likely to be made to 

the draft guideline update during the 

review process this draft document 

should not be used as a clinical practice 

guideline until final publication. It is 

anticipated that the final guideline 

update will be made available to the 

public in the spring of 2008. 

You will be mailed a printed DRAFT 

copy of the draft guideline update and 

sent by e-mail: (1) An electronic form to 

submit any comments and (2) a short 

conflict of interest form to be completed 

by those submitting comments. 

ADDRESSES: Written requests, including 

your e-mail address, should be mailed 

to: David Fraser, Assistant Director for 

Research Administration, University of 

Wisconsin-Center for Tobacco Research 

and Intervention, 1930 Monroe Street, 

Suite 200, Madison, WI 53711–2027. 

Automated Review Process 

A computerized guideline review 

process enables comments to be entered 

on a special form designed for typed 

entry, documentation and consideration 

of all comments. The form will be sent 

by e-mail, with instructions, to those 

requesting the draft guideline update. 

To facilitate the review process, it is 

strongly recommended that reviewers 

use the computer form to record their 

comments. For technical assistance or 

questions regarding this input process, 

please follow the directions in the 

materials you receive. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: For 

information on the PHS Treating 

Tobacco Use and Dependence Clinical 

Practice Guideline Update, please 

contact: CAPT Ernestine Murray, Project 

Officer, Agency for Healthcare Research 

and Quality (AHRQ), Center for 

Outcomes and Evidence, 540 Gaither 

Road, Room 6337, Rockville, MD 20850, 

Telephone: 301–427–1630, E-mail 

Address: 

ernestine.murray@ahrq.hhs.gov. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: In July 

2006 a private-sector panel of experts 

was convened by the Agencies of the 

Public Health Service to update the PHS 

Treating Tobacco Use and Dependence 

Clinical Practice Guideline to improve 

the effectiveness of smoking cessation 

activities. A public meeting was also 

held in June 2007 for the panel to 

receive comments and information 

relevant to the update of the PHS 

guideline. The panel also reviewed and 

synthesized the literature on the topic 

and drafted a set of conclusions and 

recommendations based on the best 

available scientific data and expert 

judgments. A draft of these conclusions 

and recommendations is now 

undergoing peer review by a substantial 

number of individuals and groups who 

are knowledgeable about clinical 

treatment of tobacco dependence. 

With this notice, the panel and the 

PHS are also making the draft guideline 

available to other individuals who wish 

to provide written review comments. 

After review and evaluation of the 

comments received, the panel will make 

appropriate revisions to the current 

draft PHS guideline update and prepare 

the clinical practice guideline update on 

Treating Tobacco Use and Dependence. 

Potential reviewers should note that the 

PHS may disclose the names of the 

guideline reviewers at the same time the 

guideline is published. The PHS may 

also release review comments after the 

guideline is published. Generally, 

comments will not be attributed to 

specific reviewers. However, attribution 

may be necessary or useful to indicate 

the validity or reliability of particularly 

important comments. 


jlentini on PROD1PC65 with NOTICES