Notice2025-08819
Agency Information Collection Activities: Proposed Collection: Public Comment Request; Information Collection Request Title: Shortage Designation Management System, OMB No. 0906-0029-Extension
Primary source
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Published
May 19, 2025
Issuing agencies
Health and Human Services DepartmentHealth Resources and Services Administration
Abstract
In compliance with the requirement for opportunity for public comment on proposed data collection projects of the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, HRSA announces plans to submit an Information Collection Request (ICR), described below, to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB). Prior to submitting the ICR to OMB, HRSA seeks comments from the public regarding the burden estimate, below, or any other aspect of the ICR.
Full Text
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<title>Federal Register, Volume 90 Issue 95 (Monday, May 19, 2025)</title>
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[Federal Register Volume 90, Number 95 (Monday, May 19, 2025)]
[Notices]
[Pages 21318-21319]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [<a href="http://www.gpo.gov">www.gpo.gov</a>]
[FR Doc No: 2025-08819]
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DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES
Health Resources and Services Administration
Agency Information Collection Activities: Proposed Collection:
Public Comment Request; Information Collection Request Title: Shortage
Designation Management System, OMB No. 0906-0029--Extension
AGENCY: Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA), Department
of Health and Human Services.
ACTION: Notice.
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SUMMARY: In compliance with the requirement for opportunity for public
comment on proposed data collection projects of the Paperwork Reduction
Act of 1995, HRSA announces plans to submit an Information Collection
Request (ICR), described below, to the Office of Management and Budget
(OMB). Prior to submitting the ICR to OMB, HRSA seeks comments from the
public regarding the burden estimate, below, or any other aspect of the
ICR.
DATES: Comments on this ICR should be received no later than July 18,
2025.
ADDRESSES: Submit your comments to <a href="/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection#bdcddccdd8cfcad2cfd6fdd5cfcedc93dad2cb"><span class="__cf_email__" data-cfemail="c7b7a6b7a2b5b0a8b5ac87afb5b4a6e9a0a8b1">[email protected]</span></a> or mail the HRSA
Information Collection Clearance Officer, Room 14NWH04, 5600 Fishers
Lane, Rockville, Maryland 20857.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: To request more information on the
proposed project or to obtain a copy of the data collection plans and
draft instruments, email <a href="/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection#6b1b0a1b0e191c0419002b0319180a450c041d"><span class="__cf_email__" data-cfemail="fa8a9b8a9f888d958891ba9288899bd49d958c">[email protected]</span></a> or call Samantha Miller,
the HRSA Information Collection Clearance Officer, at (301) 443-3983.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: When submitting comments or requesting
information, please include the ICR title for reference.
Information Collection Request Title: Shortage Designation
Management System OMB No. 0906-0029--Extension.
Abstract: HRSA is committed to improving the health of the Nation's
underserved communities and vulnerable populations by developing,
implementing, evaluating, and refining programs that strengthen the
nation's health workforce. The Department of Health and Human Services
relies on two federal shortage designations to identify and dedicate
resources to areas and populations in greatest need of providers:
Health Professional Shortage Area (HPSA) designations and Medically
Underserved Area/Medically Underserved Population (MUA/P) designations.
HPSA designations are geographic areas, population groups, and
facilities that are experiencing a shortage of health professionals.
The authorizing statute for the National Health Service Corps (NHSC)
created HPSAs to fulfill the statutory requirement that NHSC personnel
be directed to areas of greatest need. To further differentiate areas
of greatest need, HRSA calculates a score for each HPSA. There are
three categories of HPSAs based on health discipline: primary care,
dental health, and mental health. Scores range from 1 to 25 for primary
care and mental health and from 1 to 26 for dental health, with higher
scores indicating greater need. They are used to prioritize
applications for NHSC Loan Repayment Program award funding and
determine service sites eligible to receive NHSC Scholarship and
Students-to-Service participants.
MUA/P designations are geographic areas, or population groups
within geographic areas, that are experiencing a shortage of primary
care health care services based on the Index of Medical Underservice.
MUAs are designated for the entire population of a particular
geographic area. MUP designations are limited to a particular subset of
the population within a geographic area. Both designations were created
to aid
[[Page 21319]]
the federal government in identifying areas with healthcare workforce
shortages.
As part of HRSA's Bureau of Health Workforce's cooperative
agreement with the state primary care offices (PCOs), the state PCOs
conduct needs assessments in their states, determine what areas are
eligible for designations, and submit designation applications for HRSA
review via the Shortage Designation Management System (SDMS). Requests
that come from other sources are referred to the PCOs for their review,
concurrence, and submission via SDMS. To obtain a federal shortage
designation for an area, population, or facility, PCOs must submit a
shortage designation application through SDMS for review and approval
by HRSA. Both HPSA and MUA/P applications request local, state, and
national data on the population that is experiencing a shortage of
health professionals and the number of health professionals relative to
the population covered by the proposed designation. The information
collected on the applications is used to determine which areas,
populations, and facilities have qualifying shortages.
In addition, interested parties, including the state's governor,
primary care association, and professional associations are notified of
each designation request submitted via SDMS for their comments and
recommendations.
HRSA reviews the HPSA applications submitted by the state PCOs,
and--if they meet the designation eligibility criteria for the type of
HPSA or MUA/P the application is for--designates the HPSA or MUA/P on
behalf of the Secretary of Health and Human Services. HPSAs are
statutorily required to be annually reviewed and revised as necessary
after initial designation to reflect current data. HPSA scores,
therefore, may and do change from time to time. MUA/Ps do not have a
statutorily mandated review period.
The lists of designated HPSAs are published annually in the Federal
Register. In addition, lists of HPSAs are updated on the HRSA website
(<a href="https://data.hrsa.gov/">https://data.hrsa.gov/</a>) so that interested parties can access the
information.
Need and Proposed Use of the Information: The information obtained
from the SDMS applications is used to determine which areas,
populations, and facilities have critical shortages of health
professionals per PCO application submission. The SDMS HPSA and MUA/P
applications are used for these designation determinations. Applicants
must have a SDMS application submitted to HRSA to obtain a federal
shortage designation. In addition, the application must contain
detailed information explaining how the area, population, or facility
faces a critical shortage of health professionals.
Likely Respondents: State primary care offices and or site point of
contacts interested in obtaining a primary care, dental health, or
mental health HPSA designation or a MUA/P in their state.
Burden Statement: Burden in this context means the time expended by
persons to generate, maintain, retain, disclose, or provide the
information requested. This includes the time needed to review
instructions; to develop, acquire, install, and utilize technology and
systems for the purpose of collecting, validating, and verifying
information, processing and maintaining information, and disclosing and
providing information; to train personnel and to be able to respond to
a collection of information; to search data sources; to complete and
review the collection of information; and to transmit or otherwise
disclose the information. The total annual burden hours estimated for
this ICR are summarized in the table below.
Total Estimated Annualized Burden Hours
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Average
Number of Number of Total burden per Total burden
Form name respondents responses per responses response (in hours
respondent hours)
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Designation Planning and 54 48 2,592 8 20,736
Preparation...................
SDMS Application............... 54 83 4,482 4 17,928
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Total...................... 54 7,074 38,664
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HRSA specifically requests comments on: (1) the necessity and
utility of the proposed information collection for the proper
performance of the agency's functions; (2) the accuracy of the
estimated burden; (3) ways to enhance the quality, utility, and clarity
of the information to be collected; and (4) the use of automated
collection techniques or other forms of information technology to
minimize the information collection burden.
Maria G. Button,
Director, Executive Secretariat.
[FR Doc. 2025-08819 Filed 5-16-25; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4165-15-P
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