Solicitation of Written Comments on Draft Phase 3 Long-Term Care Facilities Strategy/Module for Inclusion in the National Action Plan To Prevent Healthcare-Associated Infections: Roadmap to Elimination, 43086-43087 [2012-17925]
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Federal Register / Vol. 77, No. 141 / Monday, July 23, 2012 / Notices
3. Once GSA makes an announcement
for temporary closure, there is potential
for a high number of new offers before
the effective date of the temporary
closure. It is highly likely that nearly all
of these offers will not generate
business. What should GSA do with
offers received in this window?
4. To help industry best plan, should
GSA’s reassessment be conducted
annually, every two years, or every three
years? What actions can GSA take to
assist industry with planning? For
example, is it better to know with
certainty when a schedule or SIN will
reopen even if that means the duration
of closure is longer, or is it better for
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question?
5. Currently, over 50 percent of
schedule contracts will not meet the
sales retention criteria. Is reducing this
percentage to 30 percent an
appropriately aggressive interim goal?
6. Are there other considerations on
how to ensure minimum impact to
industry with the implementation?
Dated: July 18, 2012.
Houston Taylor,
Assistant Commissioner, Office of Acquisition
Management, Federal Acquisition Service,
General Services Administration.
[FR Doc. 2012–17882 Filed 7–20–12; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6820–89–P
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100,000 .............................................
citizen seeking sterilization ..............
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Keith A. Tucker,
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[FR Doc. 2012–17790 Filed 7–20–12; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4150–34–P
mstockstill on DSK4VPTVN1PROD with NOTICES
DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND
HUMAN SERVICES
Solicitation of Written Comments on
Draft Phase 3 Long-Term Care
Facilities Strategy/Module for Inclusion
in the National Action Plan To Prevent
Healthcare-Associated Infections:
Roadmap to Elimination
Department of Health and
Human Services, Office of the Assistant
Secretary for Health, Office of
Healthcare Quality.
AGENCY:
VerDate Mar<15>2010
19:21 Jul 20, 2012
Jkt 226001
ACTION:
Notice.
The Office of Healthcare
Quality is soliciting public comment on
a new long-term care facilities strategy/
module of the National Action Plan to
Prevent Healthcare-Associated
Infections: Roadmap to Elimination. To
further the HHS mission to protect the
health and well-being of the nation, the
HHS Steering Committee for the
Prevention of Healthcare-Associated
Infections has developed a draft
comprehensive strategy for preventing
and reducing healthcare-associated
infections in long-term care facilities.
This Phase 3 Long-Term Care Facilities
module builds upon and is to be
included in the existing National Action
Plan to Prevent Healthcare-Associated
SUMMARY:
PO 00000
Frm 00042
Fmt 4703
Sfmt 4703
Infections: Roadmap to Elimination that
focuses on reducing healthcareassociated infections (HAIs) in acute
care hospitals, ambulatory surgical
centers, and end stage renal disease
facilities and presents strategies for
increasing healthcare personnel
influenza vaccination coverage (Phases
1 & 2).
DATES: Comments on the draft Phase 3
Long-Term Care Facilities module
should be received no later than 5:00
p.m. Eastern daylight saving time on
August 22, 2012.
ADDRESSES: The draft Phase 3 LongTerm Care Facilities module can be
found at https://www.hhs.gov/ash/
initiatives/hai/actionplan/
index.html#tier3. Comments are
preferred electronically and may be
E:\FR\FM\23JYN1.SGM
23JYN1
Federal Register / Vol. 77, No. 141 / Monday, July 23, 2012 / Notices
mstockstill on DSK4VPTVN1PROD with NOTICES
addressed to OHQ@hhs.gov. Written
responses should be addressed to the
Office of Disease Prevention and Health
Promotion, 1101 Wootton Parkway,
Suite LL100, Rockville, MD 20852,
Attention: Draft Phase 3 Long-Term Care
Facilities Module.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
Debra Nichols (240) 453–8264 or
OHQ@hhs.gov.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
I. Background
HAIs are among the leading causes of
morbidity and mortality in the United
States and the most common type of
adverse event in the field of healthcare
today. They are defined as localized or
systemic adverse events, resulting from
the presence of an infectious agent or
toxin, occurring to a patient in a
healthcare setting. An epidemiologic
study by the Centers for Disease Control
and Prevention (CDC) revealed that the
subset of HAIs with hospital-onset
accounted for approximately one in
twenty hospital patients contracting an
HAI. The fiscal cost is steep as well.
HAIs contribute to an additional 28 to
33 billion dollars in healthcare
expenditures annually.
For these reasons, the prevention and
reduction of healthcare-associated
infections is a top priority for the U.S.
Department of Health and Human
Services (HHS). Multiple agencies
within HHS have been working to
reduce the incidence and prevalence of
HAIs for decades. To further efforts, the
HHS Steering Committee for the
Prevention of Healthcare-Associated
Infections was established in July 2008
and charged with developing a
comprehensive strategy to progress
toward the elimination of HAIs.
In 2009, the Steering Committee
issued the initial version of the National
Action Plan to Prevent HealthcareAssociated Infections: Roadmap to
Elimination. The initial strategy (Phase
1) focused on the prevention of
infections in the acute care hospital
setting and includes a prioritized
research agenda; an integrated
information systems strategy; policy
options for linking payment incentives
or disincentives to quality of care and
enhancing regulatory oversight of
hospitals; and a national messaging plan
to raise awareness of HAIs among the
general public, providers, and other
stakeholder groups. The Action Plan
also delineates specific measures and
five-year goals to focus efforts and track
national progress in reducing the most
prevalent infections. In addition, the
plan intended to enhance collaboration
with non-government stakeholders and
VerDate Mar<15>2010
19:21 Jul 20, 2012
Jkt 226001
partners at the national, regional, state,
and local levels to strengthen
coordination and impact of efforts.
Recognizing the need to coordinate
prevention efforts across healthcare
facilities, HHS released Phase 2 of the
Action Plan in late 2010. Phase 2
expands efforts outside of the acute care
setting into outpatient facilities
(ambulatory surgical centers and endstage renal disease facilities). Phase 2 of
the Action Plan also addressed
strategies to increase influenza
vaccination coverage amongst
healthcare personnel as influenza
transmission to patients by healthcare
personnel is well documented;
healthcare personnel can acquire and
transmit influenza from patients or
transmit influenza to patients and other
staff; and higher vaccination coverage
among healthcare personnel has been
associated with a lower incidence of
healthcare-associated influenza cases.
The healthcare and public health
communities are increasingly
challenged to identify, respond to, and
prevent HAIs across the continuum of
settings where healthcare is delivered.
The public health model’s populationbased perspective can be deployed to
enhance HAI prevention, particularly
given the shifts in healthcare delivery
from the acute care (Phase 1) to
ambulatory (Phase 2) and now to longterm care facilities with Phase 3.
The Steering Committee has drafted a
strategy or modules that address HAI
prevention in long-term care facilities,
specifically nursing facilities and skilled
nursing facilities. Similar to its Phase 1
& 2 efforts, Phase 3 Long-Term Care
Facilities healthcare-associated
infection reduction strategies expect to
be executed through research and
guideline development, implementation
of national quality improvement
initiatives at the provider level, and
creation of payment policies that
promote infection control and reduction
in healthcare facilities.
To assist the Steering Committee in
obtaining broad input in the
development of the draft module, HHS,
through this request for information
(RFI), is seeking comments from
stakeholders and the general public on
the draft Phase 3 Long-Term Care
Facilities module. The modules can be
found at https://www.hhs.gov/ash/
initiatives/hai/actionplan/
index.html#tier3.
II. Information Request
The Office of Healthcare Quality, on
behalf of the HHS Steering Committee
for the Prevention of HealthcareAssociated Infections, requests input on
the draft: ‘‘Long-Term Care Facilities.’’
PO 00000
Frm 00043
Fmt 4703
Sfmt 4703
43087
In addition to general comments, the
Steering Committee is seeking input on
any additional gaps not addressed in the
draft strategies.
III. Potential Responders
HHS invites input from a broad range
of individuals and organizations that
have interests in preventing and
reducing healthcare-associated
infections. Some examples of these
organizations include, but are not
limited to the following:
—General public
—Healthcare, professional, and
educational organizations/societies
—Caregivers or health system providers
(e.g., physicians, physician assistants,
nurses, infection preventionists)
—State and local public health agencies
—Public health organizations
—Foundations
—Medicaid- and Medicare-related
organizations
—Insurers and business groups
—Collaboratives and consortia
When responding, please self-identify
with any of the above or other categories
(include all that apply) and your name.
Anonymous submissions will not be
considered. The submission of written
materials in response to the RFI should
not exceed 10 pages, not including
appendices and supplemental
documents. Responders may submit
other forms of electronic materials to
demonstrate or exhibit concepts of their
written responses. All comments
received before the close of the
comment period are available for
viewing by the public, including any
personally identifiable or confidential
business information that is included in
a comment.
Dated: July 17, 2012.
Don Wright,
Deputy Assistant Secretary for Health.
[FR Doc. 2012–17925 Filed 7–20–12; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4150–28–P
DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND
HUMAN SERVICES
Nomination of an In Vitro Test Method
for the Identification of Contact
Allergens: Request for Comments and
Data
Division of the National
Toxicology Program (DNTP), National
Institute of Environmental Health
Sciences (NIEHS), National Institutes of
Health (NIH).
ACTION: Request for Comments and Data.
AGENCY:
On behalf of the Interagency
Coordinating Committee on the
Validation of Alternative Methods
SUMMARY:
E:\FR\FM\23JYN1.SGM
23JYN1
]]>Agencies
[Federal Register Volume 77, Number 141 (Monday, July 23, 2012)]
[Notices]
[Pages 43086-43087]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2012-17925]
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES
Solicitation of Written Comments on Draft Phase 3 Long-Term Care
Facilities Strategy/Module for Inclusion in the National Action Plan To
Prevent Healthcare-Associated Infections: Roadmap to Elimination
AGENCY: Department of Health and Human Services, Office of the
Assistant Secretary for Health, Office of Healthcare Quality.
ACTION: Notice.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
SUMMARY: The Office of Healthcare Quality is soliciting public comment
on a new long-term care facilities strategy/module of the National
Action Plan to Prevent Healthcare-Associated Infections: Roadmap to
Elimination. To further the HHS mission to protect the health and well-
being of the nation, the HHS Steering Committee for the Prevention of
Healthcare-Associated Infections has developed a draft comprehensive
strategy for preventing and reducing healthcare-associated infections
in long-term care facilities. This Phase 3 Long-Term Care Facilities
module builds upon and is to be included in the existing National
Action Plan to Prevent Healthcare-Associated Infections: Roadmap to
Elimination that focuses on reducing healthcare-associated infections
(HAIs) in acute care hospitals, ambulatory surgical centers, and end
stage renal disease facilities and presents strategies for increasing
healthcare personnel influenza vaccination coverage (Phases 1 & 2).
DATES: Comments on the draft Phase 3 Long-Term Care Facilities module
should be received no later than 5:00 p.m. Eastern daylight saving time
on August 22, 2012.
ADDRESSES: The draft Phase 3 Long-Term Care Facilities module can be
found at https://www.hhs.gov/ash/initiatives/hai/actionplan/#tier3. Comments are preferred electronically and may be
[[Page 43087]]
addressed to OHQ@hhs.gov. Written responses should be addressed to the
Office of Disease Prevention and Health Promotion, 1101 Wootton
Parkway, Suite LL100, Rockville, MD 20852, Attention: Draft Phase 3
Long-Term Care Facilities Module.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Debra Nichols (240) 453-8264 or
OHQ@hhs.gov.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
I. Background
HAIs are among the leading causes of morbidity and mortality in the
United States and the most common type of adverse event in the field of
healthcare today. They are defined as localized or systemic adverse
events, resulting from the presence of an infectious agent or toxin,
occurring to a patient in a healthcare setting. An epidemiologic study
by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) revealed that
the subset of HAIs with hospital-onset accounted for approximately one
in twenty hospital patients contracting an HAI. The fiscal cost is
steep as well. HAIs contribute to an additional 28 to 33 billion
dollars in healthcare expenditures annually.
For these reasons, the prevention and reduction of healthcare-
associated infections is a top priority for the U.S. Department of
Health and Human Services (HHS). Multiple agencies within HHS have been
working to reduce the incidence and prevalence of HAIs for decades. To
further efforts, the HHS Steering Committee for the Prevention of
Healthcare-Associated Infections was established in July 2008 and
charged with developing a comprehensive strategy to progress toward the
elimination of HAIs.
In 2009, the Steering Committee issued the initial version of the
National Action Plan to Prevent Healthcare-Associated Infections:
Roadmap to Elimination. The initial strategy (Phase 1) focused on the
prevention of infections in the acute care hospital setting and
includes a prioritized research agenda; an integrated information
systems strategy; policy options for linking payment incentives or
disincentives to quality of care and enhancing regulatory oversight of
hospitals; and a national messaging plan to raise awareness of HAIs
among the general public, providers, and other stakeholder groups. The
Action Plan also delineates specific measures and five-year goals to
focus efforts and track national progress in reducing the most
prevalent infections. In addition, the plan intended to enhance
collaboration with non-government stakeholders and partners at the
national, regional, state, and local levels to strengthen coordination
and impact of efforts. Recognizing the need to coordinate prevention
efforts across healthcare facilities, HHS released Phase 2 of the
Action Plan in late 2010. Phase 2 expands efforts outside of the acute
care setting into outpatient facilities (ambulatory surgical centers
and end-stage renal disease facilities). Phase 2 of the Action Plan
also addressed strategies to increase influenza vaccination coverage
amongst healthcare personnel as influenza transmission to patients by
healthcare personnel is well documented; healthcare personnel can
acquire and transmit influenza from patients or transmit influenza to
patients and other staff; and higher vaccination coverage among
healthcare personnel has been associated with a lower incidence of
healthcare-associated influenza cases.
The healthcare and public health communities are increasingly
challenged to identify, respond to, and prevent HAIs across the
continuum of settings where healthcare is delivered. The public health
model's population-based perspective can be deployed to enhance HAI
prevention, particularly given the shifts in healthcare delivery from
the acute care (Phase 1) to ambulatory (Phase 2) and now to long-term
care facilities with Phase 3.
The Steering Committee has drafted a strategy or modules that
address HAI prevention in long-term care facilities, specifically
nursing facilities and skilled nursing facilities. Similar to its Phase
1 & 2 efforts, Phase 3 Long-Term Care Facilities healthcare-associated
infection reduction strategies expect to be executed through research
and guideline development, implementation of national quality
improvement initiatives at the provider level, and creation of payment
policies that promote infection control and reduction in healthcare
facilities.
To assist the Steering Committee in obtaining broad input in the
development of the draft module, HHS, through this request for
information (RFI), is seeking comments from stakeholders and the
general public on the draft Phase 3 Long-Term Care Facilities module.
The modules can be found at https://www.hhs.gov/ash/initiatives/hai/actionplan/#tier3.
II. Information Request
The Office of Healthcare Quality, on behalf of the HHS Steering
Committee for the Prevention of Healthcare-Associated Infections,
requests input on the draft: ``Long-Term Care Facilities.'' In addition
to general comments, the Steering Committee is seeking input on any
additional gaps not addressed in the draft strategies.
III. Potential Responders
HHS invites input from a broad range of individuals and
organizations that have interests in preventing and reducing
healthcare-associated infections. Some examples of these organizations
include, but are not limited to the following:
--General public
--Healthcare, professional, and educational organizations/societies
--Caregivers or health system providers (e.g., physicians, physician
assistants, nurses, infection preventionists)
--State and local public health agencies
--Public health organizations
--Foundations
--Medicaid- and Medicare-related organizations
--Insurers and business groups
--Collaboratives and consortia
When responding, please self-identify with any of the above or
other categories (include all that apply) and your name. Anonymous
submissions will not be considered. The submission of written materials
in response to the RFI should not exceed 10 pages, not including
appendices and supplemental documents. Responders may submit other
forms of electronic materials to demonstrate or exhibit concepts of
their written responses. All comments received before the close of the
comment period are available for viewing by the public, including any
personally identifiable or confidential business information that is
included in a comment.
Dated: July 17, 2012.
Don Wright,
Deputy Assistant Secretary for Health.
[FR Doc. 2012-17925 Filed 7-20-12; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4150-28-P
