[Federal Register Volume 79, Number 190 (Wednesday, October 1, 2014)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 59121-59123]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2014-23382]
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DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES
Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services
42 CFR Part 412
[CMS-1608-CN]
RIN 0938-AS09
Medicare Program; Inpatient Rehabilitation Facility Prospective
Payment System for Federal Fiscal Year 2015; Correction
ACTION: Final rule; Correction.
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SUMMARY: This document corrects technical errors that appeared in the
final rule with comment period published in the Federal Register on
August 6, 2014 entitled ``Medicare Program; Inpatient Rehabilitation
Facility Prospective Payment System for Federal Fiscal Year 2015'' (79
FR 45872).
DATES: The corrections are effective October 1, 2014.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
Gwendolyn Johnson, (410) 786-6954, for general information.
Charles Padgett, (410) 786-2811, for information about the quality
reporting program.
Kadie Thomas, (410) 786-0468, or Susanne Seagrave, (410) 786-0044,
for information about the payment policies and the proposed payment
rates.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
I. Background
In FR Doc. 2014-18447 of August 6, 2014 (79 FR 45872), there were a
number of technical errors, which are identified and corrected in the
``Summary of Errors'' and ``Correction of Errors'' sections of this
correction document. The provisions of this correction document are
effective as if they had been included in the document published on
August 6, 2014. Accordingly, the corrections are effective October 1,
2014.
II. Summary of Errors
On page 45910, in Table 8: Quality Measures Finalized in the FY
2014 IRF PPS Final Rule Affecting the FY 2016 and 2017 Adjustments to
the IRF Annual Increase Factors and Subsequent Year Increase Factors,
we inadvertently omitted the fiscal years affected by each of the
listed quality measures, and therefore, are correcting the table.
On page 45911, in our discussion of the FY 2014 IRF PPS final rule,
we made a typographical error in
[[Page 59122]]
identifying the Federal Register citation.
On page 45915, we inadvertently referred to ``future year IRP PPS
increase factors'' instead of ``future year IRF PPS increase factors.''
On page 45917, in our discussion of the Continuity Assessment
Record and Evaluation (CARE) items, we inadvertently provided an
incorrect hyperlink to the CARE reports.
On page 45918, in Table 11: Summary of IRF QRP Measures Affecting
the FY 2017 Adjustments to the IRF PPS Annual Increase Factor and
Subsequent Year Increase Factors, we inadvertently omitted the
superscripts at the end of the sixth and seventh bulleted items.
On page 45921, in our discussion of the IRF Quality Reporting
Program (QRP) data completion thresholds, we made a technical error
regarding the monthly submission of quality data. We require quarterly
submission of healthcare-associated infection data for the National
Health Safety Network (NHSN) Catheter-Associated Urinary Tract
Infection (CAUTI) Outcome Measure (NQF #0138); quarterly
submission of vaccination data for the Percent of Residents or Patients
Who Were Assessed and Appropriately Given the Seasonal Influenza
Vaccine (Short-Stay) (NQF #0680) measure; and annual submission
of vaccination data for the Influenza Vaccination Coverage among
Healthcare Personnel (NQF #0431) measure. However, the data
submitted for each measure must cover each month of the applicable
reporting period.
On page 45922, we made a typographical error in describing where
the IRF QRP quality data items can be found in the IRF Patient
Assessment Instrument (PAI) training manual.
On page 45922, in our discussion of the IRF PAI training manual, we
inadvertently provided an incorrect hyperlink to the manual.
III. Waiver of Proposed Rulemaking
In accordance with section 553(b) of the Administrative Procedure
Act (APA) (5 U.S.C. 553(b)), we ordinarily publish a notice of proposed
rulemaking in the Federal Register to provide a period for public
comment before the provisions of a rule take effect. However, we can
waive this notice-and-comment procedure if the Secretary finds, for
good cause, that the notice and comment process is impracticable,
unnecessary, or contrary to the public interest, and incorporates a
statement of the finding and the reasons therefor into the notice.
Section 553(d) of the APA ordinarily requires a 30-day delay in the
effective date of final rules after the date of their publication in
the Federal Register. This 30-day delay in the effective date can be
waived, however, if an agency finds for good cause that the delay is
impracticable, unnecessary, or contrary to the public interest, and the
agency incorporates a statement of the findings and its reasons in the
rule issued.
This document merely corrects typographical and technical errors in
the preamble of the FY 2015 IRF PPS final rule. The provisions of that
final rule have been subjected to notice-and-comment procedures. The
corrections contained in this document are truly technical and/or
typographical and do not make substantive changes to the policies and
payment methodologies that were adopted in the FY 2015 IRF PPS final
rule. Therefore, we find for good cause that it is unnecessary and
would be contrary to the public interest to undertake further notice-
and-comment procedures to incorporate the corrections in this document
into the FY 2015 IRF PPS final rule. For the same reasons, we find that
there is good cause to waive the 30-day delay in the effective date for
these corrections. Specifically, we believe that it is in the public
interest to ensure that the FY 2015 IRF PPS final rule accurately
reflects our policies as of the date they take effect. Therefore, we
find that delaying the effective date of these corrections beyond the
effective date of the final rule would be contrary to the public
interest. In so doing, we find good cause to waive the 30-day delay in
effective date.
IV. Correction of Errors
In FR Doc. 2014-18447 of August 6, 2014 (79 FR 45872), make the
following corrections:
1. On page 45910, Table 8: Quality Measures Finalized in the FY
2014 IRF PPS Final Rule Affecting the FY 2016 and 2017 Adjustments to
the IRF Annual Increase Factors and Subsequent Year Increase Factors,
the table is corrected to read as follows:
Table 8--Quality Measures Finalized in the FY 2014 IRF PPS Final Rule
Affecting the FY 2016 and 2017 Adjustments to the IRF Annual Increase
Factors and Subsequent Year Increase Factors
------------------------------------------------------------------------
NQF measure ID Measure title
------------------------------------------------------------------------
NQF #0431 \+\.. Influenza Vaccination Coverage among Healthcare
Personnel (affecting the FY 2016 adjustment to
the IRF annual increase factor and subsequent
year increase factors).
NQF #0680*..... Percent of Residents or Patients Who Were
Assessed and Appropriately Given the Seasonal
Influenza Vaccine (Short-Stay) (affecting the
FY 2017 adjustment to the IRF annual increase
factor and subsequent year increase factors).
NQF #0678*..... Percent of Residents or Patients with Pressure
Ulcers That Are New or Worsened (Short-Stay)--
Adoption of the NQF-Endorsed Version of this
Measure. (affecting the FY 2016 adjustment to
the IRF annual increase factor and subsequent
year increase factors).
NQF #2502**.... All-Cause Unplanned Readmission Measure for 30
Days Post-Discharge from Inpatient
Rehabilitation Facilities (affecting the FY
2016 adjustment to the IRF annual increase
factor and subsequent year increase factors).
------------------------------------------------------------------------
\+\Using the CDC NHSN.
* Using the IRF-PAI Version 1.2 that is effective on October 1, 2014;
available at http://www.cms.gov/Medicare/Medicare-Fee-for-Service-Payment/InpatientRehabFacPPS/Downloads/IRF-PAI-FINAL-for-Use-Oct2014-updated-v4.pdf.
** Not NQF-endorsed, currently under review by NQF. (See http://
www.qualityforum.org/All-CauseAdmissionsandReadmissionsMeasures.aspx)
2. On page 45911, first column, section C.1, first paragraph, lines
2 and 3, the Federal Register citation ``78 FR 47094'' is corrected to
read ``78 FR 47904.''
3. On page 45915, first column following Table 9, first paragraph,
line 3, the acronym ``IRP'' is corrected to read ``IRF.''
4. On page 45917, first column, lines 9 through 18, the hyperlink,
``http://www.cms.gov/Medicare/Quality-Initiatives-Patient-Assessment-
Instruments/Post-Acute-CareQualityInitiatives/Downloads/The-
Development-and-Testing-of-the-Continuity-Assessment-Record-and-
[[Page 59123]]
Evaluation-CARE-Item-Set-Final-Report-on-the-Development-of-the-CARE-
Item-Set-and-Current-Assessment-Comparisons-Volume-3-of-3.pdf.'' is
corrected to read ``http://www.cms.gov/Medicare/Quality-Initiatives-
Patient-Assessment-Instruments/Post-Acute-Care-Quality-Initiatives/
Downloads/The-Development-and-Testing-of-the-Continuity-Assessment-
Record-and-Evaluation-CARE-Item-Set-Final-Report-on-the-Development-of-
the-CARE-Item-Set-and-Current-Assessment-Comparisons-Volume-3-of-
3.pdf.''
5. On page 45917, first column, lines 19 through 27, the hyperlink,
``http://www.cms.gov/Medicare/Quality-Initiatives-Patient-Assessment-
Instruments/Post-Acute-Care-Quality-Initiatives/Downloads/The-
Development-and-Testing-of-the-Continuity-Assessment-Record-and-
Evaluation-CARE-Item-Set-Final-Report-on-the-Development-of-the-CARE-
Item-Set-Volume-1-of-3.pdf.'' is corrected to read ``http://
www.cms.gov/Medicare/Quality-Initiatives-Patient-Assessment-
Instruments/Post-Acute-Care-Quality-Initiatives/Downloads/The-
Development-and-Testing-of-the-Continuity-Assessment-Record-and-
Evaluation-CARE-Item-Set-Final-Report-on-the-Development-of-the-CARE-
Item-Set-Volume-1-of-3.pdf.''
6. On page 45918, Table 11: Summary of IRF QRP Measures Affecting
the FY 2017 Adjustments to the IRF PPS Annual Increase Factor and
Subsequent Year Increase Factors, the superscript ``+''is added at the
end of ``NQF #1716: National Healthcare Safety Network (NHSN)
Facility-Wide Inpatient Hospital-Onset Methicillin-Resistant
Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) Bacteremia Outcome Measure.''
7. On page 45918, Table 11: Summary of IRF QRP Measures Affecting
the FY 2017 Adjustments to the IRF PPS Annual Increase Factor and
Subsequent Year Increase Factors, the superscript ``+''is added at the
end of ``NQF #1717: National Healthcare Safety Network (NHSN)
Facility-Wide Inpatient Hospital-Onset Clostridium difficile Infection
(CDI) Outcome Measure.''
8. On page 45921, first column, section J, first paragraph, lines
17 through 20, the phrase ``monthly submission of such quality data for
the healthcare-associated infection or vaccination data'' is corrected
to read ``submission of healthcare-associated infection or vaccination
data covering each month of the applicable reporting period.''
9. On page 45922, first column, line 8, the phrase ``Chapter 4'' is
corrected to read ``Section 4.''
10. On page 45922, first column, lines 11 through 15, the
hyperlink, ``http://www.cms.gov/Medicare/Quality-Initiatives-Patient-
Assessment-Instruments/IRF-Quality-Reporting/'' ``is corrected to read
``http://www.cms.gov/Medicare/Quality-Initiatives-Patient-Assessment-
Instruments/IRF-Quality-Reporting/Training.html.''
Dated: September 25, 2014.
C'Reda Weeden,
Executive Secretary to the Department, Department of Health and Human
Services.
[FR Doc. 2014-23382 Filed 9-30-14; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4120-01-P