Rule2024-24801
Medicare and Medicaid Programs; Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act; Advancing Interoperability and Improving Prior Authorization Processes for Medicare Advantage Organizations, Medicaid Managed Care Plans, State Medicaid Agencies, Children's Health Insurance Program (CHIP) Agencies and CHIP Managed Care Entities, Issuers of Qualified Health Plans on the Federally- Facilitated Exchanges, Merit-Based Incentive Payment System (MIPS) Eligible Clinicians, and Eligible Hospitals and Critical Access Hospitals in the Medicare Promoting Interoperability Program; Correcting Amendment
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
October 25, 2024
Effective
October 25, 2024
Issuing agencies
Health and Human Services DepartmentCenters for Medicare & Medicaid Services
Abstract
This document corrects technical errors in the final rule that appeared in the February 8, 2024 Federal Register titled "Medicare and Medicaid Programs; Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act; Advancing Interoperability and Improving Prior Authorization Processes for Medicare Advantage Organizations, Medicaid Managed Care Plans, State Medicaid Agencies, Children's Health Insurance Program (CHIP) Agencies and CHIP Managed Care Entities, Issuers of Qualified Health Plans on the Federally-Facilitated Exchanges, Merit-Based Incentive Payment System (MIPS) Eligible Clinicians, and Eligible Hospitals and Critical Access Hospitals in the Medicare Promoting Interoperability Program".
Full Text
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<title>Federal Register, Volume 89 Issue 207 (Friday, October 25, 2024)</title>
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[Federal Register Volume 89, Number 207 (Friday, October 25, 2024)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 85070-85071]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [<a href="http://www.gpo.gov">www.gpo.gov</a>]
[FR Doc No: 2024-24801]
[[Page 85070]]
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DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES
Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services
42 CFR Parts 431 and 457
[CMS-0057-F2]
RIN 0938-AU87
Medicare and Medicaid Programs; Patient Protection and Affordable
Care Act; Advancing Interoperability and Improving Prior Authorization
Processes for Medicare Advantage Organizations, Medicaid Managed Care
Plans, State Medicaid Agencies, Children's Health Insurance Program
(CHIP) Agencies and CHIP Managed Care Entities, Issuers of Qualified
Health Plans on the Federally- Facilitated Exchanges, Merit-Based
Incentive Payment System (MIPS) Eligible Clinicians, and Eligible
Hospitals and Critical Access Hospitals in the Medicare Promoting
Interoperability Program; Correcting Amendment
AGENCY: Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS), Department of
Health and Human Services (HHS).
ACTION: Final rule; correcting amendment.
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SUMMARY: This document corrects technical errors in the final rule that
appeared in the February 8, 2024 Federal Register titled ``Medicare and
Medicaid Programs; Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act;
Advancing Interoperability and Improving Prior Authorization Processes
for Medicare Advantage Organizations, Medicaid Managed Care Plans,
State Medicaid Agencies, Children's Health Insurance Program (CHIP)
Agencies and CHIP Managed Care Entities, Issuers of Qualified Health
Plans on the Federally-Facilitated Exchanges, Merit-Based Incentive
Payment System (MIPS) Eligible Clinicians, and Eligible Hospitals and
Critical Access Hospitals in the Medicare Promoting Interoperability
Program''.
DATES: This correcting amendment is effective October 25, 2024.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: David Koppel (303) 844-2883.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
I. Background
In FR Doc. 2024-00895 of February 8, 2024 (89 FR 8758), the final
rule titled ``Medicare and Medicaid Programs; Patient Protection and
Affordable Care Act; Advancing Interoperability and Improving Prior
Authorization Processes for Medicare Advantage Organizations, Medicaid
Managed Care Plans, State Medicaid Agencies, Children's Health
Insurance Program (CHIP) Agencies and CHIP Managed Care Entities,
Issuers of Qualified Health Plans on the Federally-Facilitated
Exchanges, Merit-Based Incentive Payment System (MIPS) Eligible
Clinicians, and Eligible Hospitals and Critical Access Hospitals in the
Medicare Promoting Interoperability Program'' (hereinafter referred to
as ``CMS Interoperability and Prior Authorization final rule''), there
were technical errors associated with the regulations text that are
identified and corrected in this correcting amendment.
II. Summary of Errors
In Sec. Sec. 431.60 and 457.730, we are correcting errors in
executing the amendatory instructions regarding the removal of
paragraph (g) (Data availability) and the redesignation of paragraph
(f) (Beneficiary resources regarding privacy and security) as the new
paragraph (g).
III. Waiver of Proposed Rulemaking and Delay in Effective Date
Under 5 U.S.C. 553(b) of the Administrative Procedure Act (APA),
the agency is required to publish a notice of the proposed rule in the
Federal Register before the provisions of a rule take effect.
Specifically, 5 U.S.C. 553 requires the agency to publish a notice of
the proposed rule in the Federal Register that includes a reference to
the legal authority under which the rule is proposed, and the terms and
substance of the proposed rule or a description of the subjects and
issues involved. Further, 5 U.S.C. 553 requires the agency to give
interested parties the opportunity to participate in the rulemaking
through public comment on a proposed rule. Similarly, section
1871(b)(1) of the Act requires the Secretary to provide for notice of
the proposed rule in the Federal Register and provide a period of not
less than 60 days for public comment for rulemaking to carry out the
administration of the Medicare program under title XVIII of the Act. In
addition, section 553(d) of the APA, and section 1871(e)(1)(B)(i) of
the Social Security Act (the Act) mandate a 30-day delay in effective
date after issuance or publication of a rule. Sections 553(b)(B) and
553(d)(3) of the APA provide for exceptions from the notice and comment
and delay in effective date APA requirements. In cases in which these
exceptions apply, sections 1871(b)(2)(C) and 1871(e)(1)(B)(ii) of the
Act, also provide exceptions from the notice and 60-day comment period
and delay in effective date requirements of the Act. Section 553(b)(B)
of the APA and section 1871(b)(2)(C) of the Act authorize an agency to
dispense with normal rulemaking requirements for good cause if the
agency makes a finding that the notice and comment process are
impracticable, unnecessary, or contrary to the public interest. In
addition, both section 553(d)(3) of the APA and section
1871(e)(1)(B)(ii) of the Act allow the agency to avoid the 30-day delay
in effective date where such delay is contrary to the public interest
and an agency includes a statement of support.
We believe that this correcting amendment does not constitute a
rule that would be subject to the notice and comment or delayed
effective date requirements of the APA or section 1871 of the Act. This
correcting amendment corrects technical errors in the regulatory text
of the final rule but does not make substantive changes to the policies
that were adopted in the final rule. As a result, this correcting
amendment is intended to ensure that the regulations at Sec. Sec.
431.60 and 457.730 accurately reflect the policies adopted in the final
rule.
In addition, even if this were a rule to which the notice and
comment procedures and delayed effective date requirements applied, we
find that there is good cause to waive such requirements. Undertaking
further notice and comment procedures to incorporate the regulatory
text correction in this document into the final rule or delaying the
effective date would be unnecessary, as we are not altering our
policies or regulatory changes, but rather, we are simply implementing
the policies and regulatory changes that we previously proposed,
requested comment on, and subsequently finalized.
This final rule correcting amendment is intended solely to ensure
that the final rule and the Code of Federal Regulations (CFR)
accurately reflect policies and regulatory changes that have been
adopted through rulemaking. Furthermore, such notice and comment
procedures would be contrary to the public interest because it is in
the public's interest to ensure that the final rule accurately reflects
our policies and regulatory changes. Therefore, we believe we have good
cause to waive the notice and comment and effective date requirements.
List of Subjects
42 CFR Part 431
Grant programs--health, Health facilities, Medicaid, Privacy,
Reporting
[[Page 85071]]
and recordkeeping requirements, State fair hearings.
42 CFR Part 457
Administrative practice and procedure, Grant programs--health,
Health insurance, Reporting and recordkeeping requirements.
For the reasons set forth in the preamble, the Centers for Medicare
& Medicaid Services corrects 42 CFR chapter IV by making the following
correcting amendments:
PART 431--STATE ORGANIZATION AND GENERAL ADMINISTRATION
0
1. The authority citation for part 431 continues to read as follows:
Authority: 42 U.S.C. 1302.
0
2. Section 431.60 is amended by revising paragraph (g) to read as
follows:
Sec. 431.60 Beneficiary access to and exchange of data.
* * * * *
(g) Beneficiary resources regarding privacy and security. The State
must provide in an easily accessible location on its public website and
through other appropriate mechanisms through which it ordinarily
communicates with current and former beneficiaries seeking to access
their health information held by the State Medicaid agency, educational
resources in non-technical, simple and easy-to-understand language
explaining at a minimum--
(1) General information on steps the individual may consider taking
to help protect the privacy and security of their health information,
including factors to consider in selecting an application including
secondary uses of data, and the importance of understanding the
security and privacy practices of any application to which they will
entrust their health information; and
(2) An overview of which types of organizations or individuals are
and are not likely to be HIPAA covered entities, the oversight
responsibilities of the Office for Civil Rights (OCR) and the Federal
Trade Commission (FTC), and how to submit a complaint to--
(i) The HHS Office for Civil Rights (OCR); and
(ii) The Federal Trade Commission (FTC).
* * * * *
PART 457--ALLOTMENTS AND GRANTS TO STATES
0
3. The authority citation for part 457 continues to read as follows:
Authority: 42 U.S.C. 1302.
0
4. Section 457.730 is amended by revising paragraph (g) to read as
follows:
Sec. 457.730 Beneficiary access to and exchange of data.
* * * * *
(g) Beneficiary resources regarding privacy and security. A State
must provide in an easily accessible location on its public website and
through other appropriate mechanisms through which it ordinarily
communicates with current and former beneficiaries seeking to access
their health information held by the State CHIP agency, educational
resources in non-technical, simple and easy-to-understand language
explaining at a minimum--
(1) General information on steps the individual may consider taking
to help protect the privacy and security of their health information,
including factors to consider in selecting an application including
secondary uses of data, and the importance of understanding the
security and privacy practices of any application to which they will
entrust their health information; and
(2) An overview of which types of organizations or individuals are
and are not likely to be HIPAA covered entities, the oversight
responsibilities of OCR and FTC, and how to submit a complaint to--
(i) The HHS Office for Civil Rights (OCR); and
(ii) The Federal Trade Commission (FTC).
* * * * *
Elizabeth J. Gramling,
Executive Secretary to the Department, Department of Health and Human
Services.
[FR Doc. 2024-24801 Filed 10-24-24; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4120-01-P
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