Federal Register / Vol. 66, No. 26 / Wednesday, February 7, 2001 / Notices 9349

DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND

HUMAN SERVICES

Health Care Financing Administration

[HCFA–3054–N]

Medicare Program; Renewal of the

Medicare Coverage Advisory

Committee (MCAC)

AGENCY: Health Care Financing

Administration (HCFA), HHS.

ACTION: Notice.

SUMMARY: This notice announces the

renewal of the Medicare Coverage

Advisory Committee (MCAC). The

MCAC advises the Secretary of the

Department of Health and Human

Services (the Secretary) and the

Administrator of the Health Care

Financing Administration, as requested

by the Secretary, whether medical items

and services are reasonable and

necessary under Title XVIII of the Social

Security Act. This notice announces the

signing of the MCAC charter renewal by

the Secretary on November 24, 2000.

The charter will terminate on November

24, 2002, unless renewed by the

Secretary.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Patricia Brocato-Simons, Office of

Clinical Standards and Quality, HCFA,

7500 Security Boulevard, Mail Stop S3–

02–01, Baltimore, MD 21244, 410–786–

0261, or Email pbrocatosimons@hcfa.gov.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

I. Background

On December 14, 1998, we published

a notice in the Federal Register (63 FR

68780) announcing the establishment of

the Medicare Coverage Advisory

Committee (MCAC). The charter for the

MCAC was signed by the Secretary on

November 24, 1998.

The MCAC, chartered under 42 U.S.C.

217(a), section 222 of the Public Health

Service Act, as amended, is governed by

the provisions of the Federal Advisory

Committee Act (FACA) (Public Law 92–

463 as amended (5 U.S.C. Appendix 2)),

which sets forth standards for the

formulation and use of advisory

committees.

The MCAC consists of 6 specialty

panels and an executive committee (EC),

with a total of 120 appointed members

from authorities in clinical and

administrative medicine, biologic and

physical sciences, public health

administration, health care data and

information management and analysis,

the economics of health care, medical

ethics, and other related professions.

The MCAC, functioning on its panel

basis, reviews and evaluates medical

literature, reviews technical

assessments, and examines data and

information on the effectiveness and

appropriateness of medical items and

services that are covered or eligible for

coverage under Medicare. The panels

work from an agenda provided by the

MCAC that lists specific issues. The

panels develop technical advice to be

reviewed and ratified by the EC to assist

us in determining reasonable and

necessary applications of medical

services and technology.

II. Provisions of This Notice

This notice announces the signing of

the MCAC charter renewal by the

Secretary on November 24, 2000. The

charter will terminate on November 24,

2002, unless renewed by the Secretary.

III. Copies of the Charter

You may obtain a copy of the

Secretary’s Charter for the MCAC by

submitting a request to Maria Ellis,

Office of Clinical Standards and

Quality, Health Care Financing

Administration, 7500 Security Blvd.,

Mail Stop S3–02–01, Baltimore, MD

21244, 410–786–0309, or E-mail the

request to mellis@hcfa.gov.

(Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance

Program No. 93.773, Medicare—Hospital

Insurance; and Program No. 93.774,

Medicare—Supplementary Medical

Insurance Program)

Dated: January 29, 2001.

Michael McMullan,

Acting Deputy Administrator, Health Care

Financing Administration.

[FR Doc. 01–3121 Filed 2–6–01; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 4120–01–P

DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND

HUMAN SERVICES

Health Resources and Services

Administration

Agency Information Collection

Activities: Submission for OMB

Review; Comment Request

Periodically, the Health Resources

and Services Administration (HRSA)

publishes abstracts of information

collection requests under review by the

Office of Management and Budget, in

compliance with the Paperwork

Reduction Act of 1995 (44 U.S.C.

Chapter 35). To request a copy of the

clearance requests submitted to OMB for

review, call the HRSA Reports

Clearance Office on (301)–443–1129.

The following request has been

submitted to the Office of Management

and Budget for review under the

Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995:

Proposed Project: The Nursing

Education Loan Repayment Program

Application (OMB No. 0915–0140)—

Revision

This is a request for revision of the

application form for the Nursing

Education Loan Repayment Program

(NELRP). The NELRP was originally

authorized by 42 U.S.C. 297b(h) (section

836(h) of the Public Health Service Act)

as amended by Pub. L. 100–607,

November 4, 1988. The NELRP is

currently authorized by 42 U.S.C. 297(n)

(section 846 of the Public Health Service

Act) as amended by Pub. L. 102–408,

October 13, 1992.

Under the NELRP, registered nurses

are offered the opportunity to enter into

a contractual agreement with the

Secretary, under which the Public

Health Service agrees to repay the

nurses’ indebtedness for nursing

education. In exchange, the nurses agree

to serve for a specified period of time in

certain types of health facilities

identified in the statute.

Nurse educational loan repayment

contracts will be approved by the

Secretary for eligible nurses who have

incurred previous monetary

indebtedness by accepting a loan for

nursing education costs from a bank,

credit union, savings and loan

association, Government agency or

program, school, or other lender that

meets NELRP criteria. Approval is

requested for the application form. The

application form requires information

from two types of respondents:

a. Applicants must provide

information on the proposed service site

and on all nursing education loans for

which reimbursement is requested, and

b. For those applicants accepted into

the NELRP, lenders must provide

information on loan status for all loans

accepted for repayment.

ESTIMATES OF ANNUALIZED HOUR BURDEN

Form/regulatory requirement Number of

respondents

Responses

per

respondents

Hours per

response

Total burden

hours

NELRP Application .......................................................................................... 1,000 1 1 1,000

Loan Verification Form .................................................................................... 50 4 .25 50