Medicare and Medicaid Programs; Adjustment of Civil Monetary Penalties for Inflation; Continuation of Effectiveness and Extension of Timeline for Publication of the Final Rule, 7-8 [2019-28363]
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Federal Register / Vol. 85, No. 1 / Thursday, January 2, 2020 / Rules and Regulations
regulations applying higher
environmental standards to the
Reservation than those imposed by state
law or local governing bodies, in
accordance with the Settlement Act.
The Congressional Review Act, 5
U.S.C. 801 et seq., as added by the Small
Business Regulatory Enforcement
Fairness Act of 1996, generally provides
that before a rule may take effect, the
agency promulgating the rule must
submit a rule report, which includes a
copy of the rule, to each House of the
Congress and to the Comptroller General
of the United States. EPA will submit a
report containing this action and other
required information to the U.S. Senate,
the U.S. House of Representatives, and
the Comptroller General of the United
States prior to publication of the rule in
the Federal Register. A major rule
cannot take effect until 60 days after it
is published in the Federal Register.
This action is not a ‘‘major rule’’ as
defined by 5 U.S.C. 804(2).
*
*
110(a)(1) and (2) Infrastructure Requirements for the 2008 8-Hour
Ozone NAAQS.
BILLING CODE 6560–50–P
DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND
HUMAN SERVICES
Centers for Medicare & Medicaid
Services
42 CFR Parts 402, 403, 411, 412, 422,
423, 460, 483, 488, and 493
[CMS–6076–RCN]
RIN 0991–AC07
Medicare and Medicaid Programs;
Adjustment of Civil Monetary Penalties
for Inflation; Continuation of
Effectiveness and Extension of
Timeline for Publication of the Final
Rule
Centers for Medicare &
Medicaid Services (CMS), HHS.
ACTION: Continuation of effectiveness
and extension of timeline for
publication of the final rule.
AGENCY:
lotter on DSKBCFDHB2PROD with RULES
Environmental protection, Air
pollution control, Incorporation by
reference, Intergovernmental relations,
Nitrogen oxides, Ozone, Reporting and
recordkeeping requirements, Volatile
organic compounds.
*
6/18/2018
[FR Doc. 2019–27543 Filed 12–31–19; 8:45 am]
This document announces the
continuation of, effectiveness of, and the
extension of the timeline for publication
of a final rule. We are issuing this
document in accordance with the Social
SUMMARY:
15:41 Dec 31, 2019
List of Subjects in 40 CFR Part 52
State effective
date
Provision
VerDate Sep<11>2014
Under section 307(b)(1) of the CAA,
petitions for judicial review of this
action must be filed in the United States
Court of Appeals for the appropriate
circuit by March 2, 2020. Filing a
petition for reconsideration by the
Administrator of this final rule does not
affect the finality of this action for the
purposes of judicial review nor does it
extend the time within which a petition
for judicial review may be filed and
shall not postpone the effectiveness of
such rule or action. This action may not
be challenged later in proceedings to
enforce its requirements. See section
307(b)(2).
Jkt 250001
40 CFR part 52 is amended as follows:
PART 52—APPROVAL AND
PROMULGATION OF
IMPLEMENTATION PLANS
1. The authority citation for part 52
continues to read as follows:
■
Authority: 42.U.S.C. 7401 et seq.
Subpart PP—South Carolina
2. Section 52.2120(e), is amended by
adding an entry for ‘‘110(a)(1) and (2)
Infrastructure Requirements for the 2008
8-Hour Ozone NAAQS’’ at the end of
the table to read as follows:
■
§ 52.2120
*
Identification of plan.
*
*
(e) * * *
EPA approval date
*
1/2/2020 [Insert citation of publication].
Frm 00007
Fmt 4700
Sfmt 4700
*
*
Explanation
*
*
Addressing prongs 1 and 2 of section
110(a)(2)(D)(i)(I) only.
Security Act (the Act), which allows an
interim final rule to remain in effect
after the expiration of the timeline
specified in the Act if the Secretary
publishes a notice of continuation
explaining why the regular timeline was
not complied with.
DATES: Effective December 31, 2019, the
Medicare provisions adopted in the
interim final rule published on
September 6, 2016 (81 FR 61538)
continue in effect and the regular
timeline for publication of the final rule
is extended for an additional year, until
September 6, 2020.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
Steve Forry (410) 786–1564 or Jaqueline
Cipa (410) 786–3259.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Section
1871(a) of the Social Security Act (the
Act) sets forth certain procedures for
promulgating regulations necessary to
carry out the administration of the
insurance programs under Title XVIII of
the Act. Section 1871(a)(3)(A) of the Act
requires the Secretary, in consultation
with the Director of the Office of
Management and Budget (OMB), to
establish a regular timeline for the
publication of final regulations based on
the previous publication of a proposed
rule or an interim final rule. In
accordance with section 1871(a)(3)(B) of
PO 00000
Dated: December 10, 2019.
Mary S. Walker,
Regional Administrator, Region 4.
*
the Act, such timeline may vary among
different rules, based on the complexity
of the rule, the number and scope of the
comments received, and other relevant
factors. However, the timeline for
publishing the final rule, cannot exceed
3 years from the date of publication of
the proposed or interim final rule,
unless there are exceptional
circumstances. After consultation with
the Director of OMB, the Secretary
published a notice, which appeared in
the December 30, 2004 Federal Register
on (69 FR 78442), establishing a general
3-year timeline for publishing Medicare
final rules after the publication of a
proposed or interim final rule.
Section 1871(a)(3)(C) of the Act states
that upon expiration of the regular
timeline for the publication of a final
regulation after opportunity for public
comment, a Medicare interim final rule
shall not continue in effect unless the
Secretary publishes notification of
continuation of the regulation that
includes an explanation of why the
regular timeline was not met. Upon
publication of such notification, the
regular timeline for publication of the
final regulation is treated as having been
extended for 1 additional year.
On September 6, 2016 Federal
Register (81 FR 61538), the Department
E:\FR\FM\02JAR1.SGM
02JAR1
lotter on DSKBCFDHB2PROD with RULES
8
Federal Register / Vol. 85, No. 1 / Thursday, January 2, 2020 / Rules and Regulations
of Health and Human Services (HHS)
issued a department-wide interim final
rule titled ‘‘Adjustment of Civil
Monetary Penalties for Inflation’’ that
established new regulations at 45 CFR
part 102 to adjust for inflation the
maximum civil monetary penalty
amounts for the various civil monetary
penalty authorities for all agencies
within the Department. HHS took this
action to comply with the Federal Civil
Penalties Inflation Adjustment Act of
1990 (the Inflation Adjustment Act) (28
U.S.C. 2461 note 2(a)), as amended by
the Federal Civil Penalties Inflation
Adjustment Act Improvements Act of
2015 (section 701 of the Bipartisan
Budget Act of 2015, (Pub. L. 114–74),
enacted on November 2, 2015). In
addition, this September 2016 interim
final rule included updates to certain
agency-specific regulations to reflect the
new provisions governing the
adjustment of civil monetary penalties
for inflation in 45 CFR part 102.
One of the purposes of the Inflation
Adjustment Act was to create a
mechanism to allow for regular
inflationary adjustments to federal civil
monetary penalties. Section 2(b)(1) of
the Inflation Adjustment Act. The 2015
amendments removed an inflation
update exclusion that previously
applied to the Social Security Act as
well as to the Occupational Safety and
Health Act. The 2015 amendments also
‘‘reset’’ the inflation calculations by
excluding prior inflationary adjustments
under the Inflation Adjustment Act and
requiring agencies to identify, for each
penalty, the year and corresponding
amount(s) for which the maximum
penalty level or range of minimum and
maximum penalties was established
(that is, originally enacted by Congress)
or last adjusted other than pursuant to
the Inflation Adjustment Act. In
accordance with section 4 of the
Inflation Adjustment Act, agencies were
required to: (1) Adjust the level of civil
monetary penalties with an initial
‘‘catch-up’’ adjustment through an
interim final rulemaking (IFR) to take
effect by August 1, 2016; and (2) make
subsequent annual adjustments for
inflation.
In the September 2016 interim final
rule, HHS adopted new regulations at 45
CFR part 102 to govern adjustment of
civil monetary penalties for inflation.
The regulation at 45 CFR 102.1 provides
that part 102 applies to each statutory
provision under the laws administered
by the Department of Health and Human
Services concerning civil monetary
penalties, and that the regulations in
part 102 supersede existing HHS
regulations setting forth civil monetary
penalty amounts. The civil money
VerDate Sep<11>2014
15:41 Dec 31, 2019
Jkt 250001
penalties and the adjusted penalty
amounts administered by all HHS
agencies are listed in tabular form in 45
CFR 102.3. In addition to codifying the
adjusted penalty amounts identified in
§ 102.3, the HHS-wide interim final rule
included several technical conforming
updates to certain agency-specific
regulations, including various CMS
regulations, to identify their updated
information, and incorporate a crossreference to the location of HHS-wide
regulations.
Because the conforming changes to
the Medicare provisions were part of a
larger, omnibus departmental interim
final rule, we inadvertently missed
setting a target date for the final rule to
make permanent the changes to the
Medicare regulations in accordance
with section 1871(a)(3)(A) of the Act
and the procedures outlined in the
December 2004 notice. Consistent with
section 1871(a)(3)(C) of the Act, we are
publishing this notice of continuation
extending the effectiveness of the
technical conforming changes to the
Medicare regulations that were
implemented through interim final rule
and to allow time to publish a final rule.
The extended time is needed to allow
for coordination with the Department to
issue a final rule and to avoid the
potential for confusion between 45 CFR
part 102, which establishes the civil
monetary payment amounts, and the
Medicare regulations subject to the
timing requirements in section
1871(a)(3)(C) of the Act which would
otherwise revert to the language that
was used prior to the Inflation
Adjustment Act. Therefore, the
Medicare provisions adopted in interim
final regulation continue in effect and
the regular timeline for publication of
the final rule is extended for an
additional year, until September 6,
2020.
Dated: December 19, 2019.
Ann C. Agnew,
Executive Secretary to the Department,
Department of Health and Human Services.
[FR Doc. 2019–28363 Filed 12–31–19; 4:15 pm]
BILLING CODE 4120–01–P
PO 00000
Frm 00008
Fmt 4700
Sfmt 4700
DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND
HUMAN SERVICES
Centers for Medicare & Medicaid
Services
42 CFR Parts 403, 409, 410, 411, 414,
415, 416, 418, 424, 425, 489, and 498
[CMS–1715–CN]
RIN 0938–AT72
Medicare Program; CY 2020 Revisions
to Payment Policies Under the
Physician Fee Schedule and Other
Changes to Part B Payment Policies;
Medicare Shared Savings Program
Requirements; Medicaid Promoting
Interoperability Program Requirements
for Eligible Professionals;
Establishment of an Ambulance Data
Collection System; Updates to the
Quality Payment Program; Medicare
Enrollment of Opioid Treatment
Programs and Enhancements to
Provider Enrollment Regulations
Concerning Improper Prescribing and
Patient Harm; and Amendments to
Physician Self-Referral Law Advisory
Opinion Regulations Final Rule; and
Coding and Payment for Evaluation
and Management, Observation and
Provision of Self-Administered
Esketamine Interim Final Rule;
Correction
Centers for Medicare &
Medicaid Services (CMS), HHS.
ACTION: Final rule; correction.
AGENCY:
This document corrects
technical errors in the final rule that
appeared in the November 15, 2019
Federal Register entitled, ‘‘Medicare
Program; CY 2020 Revisions to Payment
Policies Under the Physician Fee
Schedule and Other Changes to Part B
Payment Policies; Medicare Shared
Savings Program Requirements;
Medicaid Promoting Interoperability
Program Requirements for Eligible
Professionals; Establishment of an
Ambulance Data Collection System;
Updates to the Quality Payment
Program; Medicare Enrollment of
Opioid Treatment Programs and
Enhancements to Provider Enrollment
Regulations Concerning Improper
Prescribing and Patient Harm; and
Amendments to Physician Self-Referral
Law Advisory Opinion Regulations
Final Rule; and Coding and Payment for
Evaluation and Management,
Observation and Provision of SelfAdministered Esketamine Interim Final
Rule’’ (referred to hereafter as the ‘‘CY
2020 PFS final rule’’).
DATES: This correcting document is
effective January 1, 2020.
SUMMARY:
E:\FR\FM\02JAR1.SGM
02JAR1
]]>Agencies
[Federal Register Volume 85, Number 1 (Thursday, January 2, 2020)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 7-8]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2019-28363]
=======================================================================
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES
Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services
42 CFR Parts 402, 403, 411, 412, 422, 423, 460, 483, 488, and 493
[CMS-6076-RCN]
RIN 0991-AC07
Medicare and Medicaid Programs; Adjustment of Civil Monetary
Penalties for Inflation; Continuation of Effectiveness and Extension of
Timeline for Publication of the Final Rule
AGENCY: Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS), HHS.
ACTION: Continuation of effectiveness and extension of timeline for
publication of the final rule.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
SUMMARY: This document announces the continuation of, effectiveness of,
and the extension of the timeline for publication of a final rule. We
are issuing this document in accordance with the Social Security Act
(the Act), which allows an interim final rule to remain in effect after
the expiration of the timeline specified in the Act if the Secretary
publishes a notice of continuation explaining why the regular timeline
was not complied with.
DATES: Effective December 31, 2019, the Medicare provisions adopted in
the interim final rule published on September 6, 2016 (81 FR 61538)
continue in effect and the regular timeline for publication of the
final rule is extended for an additional year, until September 6, 2020.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Steve Forry (410) 786-1564 or
Jaqueline Cipa (410) 786-3259.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Section 1871(a) of the Social Security Act
(the Act) sets forth certain procedures for promulgating regulations
necessary to carry out the administration of the insurance programs
under Title XVIII of the Act. Section 1871(a)(3)(A) of the Act requires
the Secretary, in consultation with the Director of the Office of
Management and Budget (OMB), to establish a regular timeline for the
publication of final regulations based on the previous publication of a
proposed rule or an interim final rule. In accordance with section
1871(a)(3)(B) of the Act, such timeline may vary among different rules,
based on the complexity of the rule, the number and scope of the
comments received, and other relevant factors. However, the timeline
for publishing the final rule, cannot exceed 3 years from the date of
publication of the proposed or interim final rule, unless there are
exceptional circumstances. After consultation with the Director of OMB,
the Secretary published a notice, which appeared in the December 30,
2004 Federal Register on (69 FR 78442), establishing a general 3-year
timeline for publishing Medicare final rules after the publication of a
proposed or interim final rule.
Section 1871(a)(3)(C) of the Act states that upon expiration of the
regular timeline for the publication of a final regulation after
opportunity for public comment, a Medicare interim final rule shall not
continue in effect unless the Secretary publishes notification of
continuation of the regulation that includes an explanation of why the
regular timeline was not met. Upon publication of such notification,
the regular timeline for publication of the final regulation is treated
as having been extended for 1 additional year.
On September 6, 2016 Federal Register (81 FR 61538), the Department
[[Page 8]]
of Health and Human Services (HHS) issued a department-wide interim
final rule titled ``Adjustment of Civil Monetary Penalties for
Inflation'' that established new regulations at 45 CFR part 102 to
adjust for inflation the maximum civil monetary penalty amounts for the
various civil monetary penalty authorities for all agencies within the
Department. HHS took this action to comply with the Federal Civil
Penalties Inflation Adjustment Act of 1990 (the Inflation Adjustment
Act) (28 U.S.C. 2461 note 2(a)), as amended by the Federal Civil
Penalties Inflation Adjustment Act Improvements Act of 2015 (section
701 of the Bipartisan Budget Act of 2015, (Pub. L. 114-74), enacted on
November 2, 2015). In addition, this September 2016 interim final rule
included updates to certain agency-specific regulations to reflect the
new provisions governing the adjustment of civil monetary penalties for
inflation in 45 CFR part 102.
One of the purposes of the Inflation Adjustment Act was to create a
mechanism to allow for regular inflationary adjustments to federal
civil monetary penalties. Section 2(b)(1) of the Inflation Adjustment
Act. The 2015 amendments removed an inflation update exclusion that
previously applied to the Social Security Act as well as to the
Occupational Safety and Health Act. The 2015 amendments also ``reset''
the inflation calculations by excluding prior inflationary adjustments
under the Inflation Adjustment Act and requiring agencies to identify,
for each penalty, the year and corresponding amount(s) for which the
maximum penalty level or range of minimum and maximum penalties was
established (that is, originally enacted by Congress) or last adjusted
other than pursuant to the Inflation Adjustment Act. In accordance with
section 4 of the Inflation Adjustment Act, agencies were required to:
(1) Adjust the level of civil monetary penalties with an initial
``catch-up'' adjustment through an interim final rulemaking (IFR) to
take effect by August 1, 2016; and (2) make subsequent annual
adjustments for inflation.
In the September 2016 interim final rule, HHS adopted new
regulations at 45 CFR part 102 to govern adjustment of civil monetary
penalties for inflation. The regulation at 45 CFR 102.1 provides that
part 102 applies to each statutory provision under the laws
administered by the Department of Health and Human Services concerning
civil monetary penalties, and that the regulations in part 102
supersede existing HHS regulations setting forth civil monetary penalty
amounts. The civil money penalties and the adjusted penalty amounts
administered by all HHS agencies are listed in tabular form in 45 CFR
102.3. In addition to codifying the adjusted penalty amounts identified
in Sec. 102.3, the HHS-wide interim final rule included several
technical conforming updates to certain agency-specific regulations,
including various CMS regulations, to identify their updated
information, and incorporate a cross-reference to the location of HHS-
wide regulations.
Because the conforming changes to the Medicare provisions were part
of a larger, omnibus departmental interim final rule, we inadvertently
missed setting a target date for the final rule to make permanent the
changes to the Medicare regulations in accordance with section
1871(a)(3)(A) of the Act and the procedures outlined in the December
2004 notice. Consistent with section 1871(a)(3)(C) of the Act, we are
publishing this notice of continuation extending the effectiveness of
the technical conforming changes to the Medicare regulations that were
implemented through interim final rule and to allow time to publish a
final rule. The extended time is needed to allow for coordination with
the Department to issue a final rule and to avoid the potential for
confusion between 45 CFR part 102, which establishes the civil monetary
payment amounts, and the Medicare regulations subject to the timing
requirements in section 1871(a)(3)(C) of the Act which would otherwise
revert to the language that was used prior to the Inflation Adjustment
Act. Therefore, the Medicare provisions adopted in interim final
regulation continue in effect and the regular timeline for publication
of the final rule is extended for an additional year, until September
6, 2020.
Dated: December 19, 2019.
Ann C. Agnew,
Executive Secretary to the Department, Department of Health and Human
Services.
[FR Doc. 2019-28363 Filed 12-31-19; 4:15 pm]
BILLING CODE 4120-01-P
