Notice2024-10006
Notice for Public Comments on Potential Viral Hepatitis Quality Measures in Medicaid
Primary source
Metadata and text below are from the Federal Register, a public-domain U.S. government work. Always verify the official published version before relying on it for any legal matter.
Published
May 8, 2024
Issuing agencies
Health and Human Services Department
Abstract
The Department of Health and Human Services' (HHS) Office of Infectious Disease and HIV/AIDS Policy (OIDP) in the Office of the Assistant Secretary for Health (OASH) invites public comment on potential viral hepatitis quality measures for implementation at the state and territory level. In March 2024, OIDP hosted a technical consultation meeting (https://youtu.be/YCVC8GwFE7E) to initiate the process of understanding the needs and developing national consensus on clinically meaningful and feasible viral hepatitis quality measures for proposal to the Medicaid Adult Core Set.
Full Text
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<title>Federal Register, Volume 89 Issue 90 (Wednesday, May 8, 2024)</title>
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[Federal Register Volume 89, Number 90 (Wednesday, May 8, 2024)]
[Notices]
[Pages 38905-38906]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [<a href="http://www.gpo.gov">www.gpo.gov</a>]
[FR Doc No: 2024-10006]
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DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES
Notice for Public Comments on Potential Viral Hepatitis Quality
Measures in Medicaid
AGENCY: Office of Infectious Disease and HIV/AIDS Policy, Office of the
Assistant Secretary for Health, Office of the Secretary, Department of
Health and Human Services.
ACTION: Notice for public comment.
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SUMMARY: The Department of Health and Human Services' (HHS) Office of
Infectious Disease and HIV/AIDS Policy (OIDP) in the Office of the
Assistant Secretary for Health (OASH) invites public comment on
potential viral hepatitis quality measures for implementation at the
state and territory level. In March 2024, OIDP hosted a technical
consultation meeting (<a href="https://youtu.be/YCVC8GwFE7E">https://youtu.be/YCVC8GwFE7E</a>) to initiate the
process of understanding the needs and developing national consensus on
clinically meaningful and feasible viral hepatitis quality measures for
proposal to the Medicaid Adult Core Set.
DATES: All comments must be received by 5 p.m. ET on June 7, 2024 to be
considered.
ADDRESSES: All comments must be submitted electronically to
<a href="/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection#c887818c989ea1baa9a480adb8a9bca1bca1bb88a0a0bbe6afa7be"><span class="__cf_email__" data-cfemail="1857515c484e716a7974507d68796c716c716b5870706b367f776e">[email protected]</span></a> to be considered.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Jessica Deerin, Ph.D., MPH, OIDP,
Viral Hepatitis Policy Advisor at <a href="/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection#5c16392f2f353f3d721839392e35321c34342f723b332a"><span class="__cf_email__" data-cfemail="a5efc0d6d6ccc6c48be1c0c0d7cccbe5cdcdd68bc2cad3">[email protected]</span></a> or 202-795-
7625.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: CDC released updated hepatitis C and
hepatitis B screening recommendations to screen all adults aged 18
years and older at least once in a lifetime and all pregnant women
during each pregnancy in April 2020 and March 2023, respectively.
Screening is an important first step in the viral hepatitis continuum
of care and a necessary tool to reach viral hepatitis elimination by
2030.
Additionally, hepatitis C has a life-saving treatment resulting in
a cure in >95% of patients. Yet, many patients are not linked to care
and complete treatment. Less than 1 in 3 people with health insurance
initiated DAA treatment within a year of hepatitis C diagnosis and
people with Medicaid were less likely to initiate treatment than those
with private insurance. Hepatitis B treatment can reduce hepatitis B
viral load, lowering the risk of liver cancer and mortality.
Quality measures are tools to monitor and improve the quality of
health care. Scaling up viral hepatitis screening, linkage to care, and
access to treatment will ultimately reduce transmission, incidence of
new infections, prevent liver cancer and mortality, and allow the U.S.
to make strides in reaching viral hepatitis elimination by 2030.
There are currently no viral hepatitis quality measures in the
Medicaid Adult Core Set. The Medicaid Adult Core Set is a core set of
health care quality measures related to physical and behavioral health
for adult Medicaid enrollees. The Adult Core Set encourages
standardized reporting by States on a uniform set of measures to drive
quality improvement. Since Medicaid provides coverage for a
disproportionate number of people with hepatitis B and hepatitis C,
OIDP is leading an initiative to develop consensus around clinically
meaningful and feasible state level viral hepatitis quality measures to
propose to the Medicaid Adult Core Set.
OIDP hosted a Viral Hepatitis Quality Measures Technical
Consultation Meeting on March 7, 2024. State panelists from Medicaid
and public health departments shared their experience in selection,
testing, and implementation of current state viral hepatitis quality
measures, as well as recommendations for measures to propose to the
Medicaid Adult Core Set. State panelists reached consensus to
prioritize the development, use, and adoption of a hepatitis C
screening and treatment initiation measure based on the following
rationale:
<bullet> Clinical and public health insights are high, leading to
an understanding of the cascade of care for infected people who access
treatment and cure;
<bullet> The measure drives screening and linkage to care by
translating recently updated CDC recommendations into routine practice
in the health care delivery system;
<bullet> Data for a screening and treatment initiation measure is
available to state Medicaid programs through administrative claims and
encounter data, and is consistent and comparable across states; and
<bullet> The method of using administrative data sources to
represent hepatitis C treatment through pharmacy claims was explained
as an acceptable proxy for receipt of treatment.
HHS hereby requests public comment on the clinical significance,
usability, feasibility, and likely uptake of hepatitis C screening and
hepatitis C treatment initiation quality measures, as well as
recommendations with adequate justifications on other feasible viral
hepatitis measures to consider.
Information Needs
HHS is seeking responses with adequate justification to the
questions listed below.
1. Are you in support of adopting a hepatitis C screening and
treatment initiation measure within state Medicaid programs?
a. If you represent a state Medicaid program, what is the likely
uptake of this measure?
2. What other measures should HHS consider for testing and proposal
to the Medicaid Adult Core Set (i.e., hepatitis B screening, hepatitis
B linkage to care, hepatitis C sustained virological response (SVR))?
Please provide support for how that measure is clinically meaningful,
feasible, and actionable for state Medicaid programs. What data source
or data element can be utilized to calculate the measure?
3. Would it be feasible and clinically meaningful to implement a
hepatitis B screening, hepatitis C screening and hepatitis C treatment
initiation quality measure within state Medicaid programs? If you
represent a state Medicaid program, what is the likely uptake of this
measure?
[[Page 38906]]
Dated: May 2, 2024.
B. Kaye Hayes,
Deputy Assistant Secretary for Infectious Disease, Department of Health
and Human Services.
[FR Doc. 2024-10006 Filed 5-7-24; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4150-44-P
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