Medicare Program; Secure Electronic Prior Authorization for Medicare Part D Program; Delay in Effective Date, 7813-7814 [2021-02181]
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Federal Register / Vol. 86, No. 20 / Tuesday, February 2, 2021 / Rules and Regulations
Accordingly, the Department is not
required either to certify that the final
rule would not have a significant
economic impact on a substantial
number of small entities or to conduct
a regulatory flexibility analysis.
§ 36.4340
Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance
The Catalog of Federal Domestic
Assistance number and title for the
program affected by this document is
64.114, Veterans Housing Guaranteed
and Insured Loans.
PART 42—STANDARDS
IMPLEMENTING THE PROGRAM
FRAUD CIVIL REMEDIES ACT
Congressional Review Act
Pursuant to the Congressional Review
Act (5 U.S.C. 801 et seq.), the Office of
Information and Regulatory Affairs
designated this rule as not a major rule,
as defined by 5 U.S.C. 804(2).
List of Subjects
38 CFR Part 36
Condominiums, Housing, Individuals
with disabilities, Loan programs—
housing and community development,
Loan programs—veterans, Manufactured
homes, Mortgage insurance, Reporting
and recordkeeping requirements,
Veterans.
38 CFR Part 42
Administrative practice and
procedure, Claims, Fraud, Penalties.
Luvenia Potts,
Regulations Development Coordinator, Office
of Regulation Policy & Management, Office
of the Secretary, Department of Veterans
Affairs.
jbell on DSKJLSW7X2PROD with RULES
Editorial note: This document was
received for publication by the Office of the
Federal Register on January 15, 2021.
For the reasons stated in the
preamble, the Department of Veterans
Affairs amends 38 CFR parts 36 and 42
as set forth below:
1. The authority citation for part 36
continues to read as follows:
■
Authority: 38 U.S.C. 501 and 3720.
VerDate Sep<11>2014
15:58 Feb 01, 2021
Jkt 253001
2. In § 36.4340, amend paragraphs
(k)(1)(i) introductory text and (k)(3) by
removing ‘‘$23,331’’ and adding in its
place ‘‘$23,607’’.
■
3. The authority citation for part 42
continues to read as follows:
■
Authority: Pub. L. 99–509, secs. 6101–
6104, 100 Stat. 1874, codified at 31 U.S.C.
3801–3812.
§ 42.3
[Amended]
4. In § 42.3, amend paragraphs
(a)(1)(iv) and (b)(1)(ii) by removing
‘‘$11,665’’ and adding in its place
‘‘$11,803’’.
■
[FR Doc. 2021–01335 Filed 2–1–21; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 8320–01–P
DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND
HUMAN SERVICES
Centers for Medicare & Medicaid
Services
42 CFR Part 423
Signing Authority
The Secretary of Veterans Affairs, or
designee, approved this document and
authorized the undersigned to sign and
submit the document to the Office of the
Federal Register for publication
electronically as an official document of
the Department of Veterans Affairs.
Brooks D. Tucker, Assistant Secretary
for Congressional and Legislative
Affairs, Performing the Delegable Duties
of the Chief of Staff, Department of
Veterans Affairs, approved this
document on January 14, 2021, for
publication.
PART 36—LOAN GUARANTY
[Amended]
[CMS–4189–F2]
RIN 0938–AT94
Medicare Program; Secure Electronic
Prior Authorization for Medicare Part D
Program; Delay in Effective Date
Centers for Medicare &
Medicaid Services (CMS), Department
of Health and Human Services (HHS).
ACTION: Final rule; delay in effective
date.
AGENCY:
SUMMARY: In accordance with the
memorandum of January 20, 2021 from
the Assistant to the President and the
Chief of Staff, entitled ‘‘Regulatory
Review,’’ this action temporarily delays
for 60 days the effective date of the
December 31, 2020 final rule entitled,
‘‘Medicare Program; Secure Electronic
Prior Authorization For Medicare Part
D’’, which published on December 31,
2020.
The effective date of the final
rule amending 42 CFR part 423
published at 85 FR 86824 on December
31, 2020, is delayed from February 1,
2021, to March 30, 2021.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
Joella Roland, (410) 786–7638.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
DATES:
PO 00000
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7813
Background and Provisions of the Final
Rule
The January 20, 2021 memorandum
from the Assistant to the President and
Chief of Staff, entitled ‘‘Regulatory
Freeze Pending Review,’’ instructed
Federal agencies to delay the effective
date of rules published in the Federal
Register, but which have not yet taken
effect, for a period of 60 days from the
date of the memorandum.
The purpose of the final rule is to
adopt a new standard for certain
transactions concerning Part D-covered
drugs prescribed to Part D-eligible
individuals under the Part D eprescribing program. Under this final
rule, Part D plan sponsors will be
required to support version 2017071 of
the National Council for Prescription
Drug Programs (NCPDP) SCRIPT
standard for four electronic Prior
Authorization (ePA) transactions, and
prescribers will be required to use that
standard when performing ePA
transactions for Part D-covered drugs
they wish to prescribe to Part D-eligible
individuals. Part D plans, as defined in
42 CFR 423.4, include Prescription Drug
Plans (PDPs) and Medicare Advantage
Prescription Drug Plans (MA–PDs); Part
D sponsor, as defined in 42 CFR 423.4,
means the entity sponsoring a Part D
plan, MA organization offering a MA–
PD plan, a Programs of All-Inclusive
Care for the Elderly (PACE) organization
sponsoring a PACE plan offering
qualified prescription drug coverage,
and a cost plan offering qualified
prescription drug coverage. The ePA
transaction standard will provide for the
electronic transmission of information
between the prescribing health care
professional and Part D plan sponsor to
inform the sponsor’s determination as to
whether or not a prior authorization
(PA) should be granted. The NCPDP
SCRIPT standard version 2017071 was
adopted as a Part D e-prescribing
program standard for certain defined
transactions in the April 16, 2018 final
rule (83 FR 16440) titled Medicare
Program; Contract Year 2019 Policy and
Technical Changes to the Medicare
Advantage, Medicare Cost Plan,
Medicare Fee-for-Service, the Medicare
Prescription Drug Benefit Programs, and
the PACE Program that became effective
June 15, 2018.
The effective date of that rule, which
would have been February 1, 2021, is
now effective on March 30, 2021.
The temporary delay in the effective
date of this final rule is necessary to
give Department officials the
opportunity for further review and
consideration of new regulations,
consistent with the memorandum of
E:\FR\FM\02FER1.SGM
02FER1
7814
Federal Register / Vol. 86, No. 20 / Tuesday, February 2, 2021 / Rules and Regulations
January 20, 2021, from the Assistant to
the President and Chief of Staff, entitled
‘‘Regulatory Freeze Pending Review.’’
Norris Cochran,
Acting Secretary, Department of Health and
Human Services.
[FR Doc. 2021–02181 Filed 1–29–21; 11:15 am]
BILLING CODE 4120–01–P
DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND
HUMAN SERVICES
Centers for Medicare & Medicaid
Services
42 CFR Part 486
[CMS–3380–F2]
RIN 0938–AU02
Medicare and Medicaid Programs;
Organ Procurement Organizations
Conditions for Coverage: Revisions to
the Outcome Measure Requirements
for Organ Procurement Organizations;
Public Comment Period; Delay of
Effective Date
Centers for Medicare &
Medicaid Services (CMS), Health and
Human Services (HHS).
ACTION: Final rule; public comment
period; delay of effective date.
jbell on DSKJLSW7X2PROD with RULES
AGENCY:
SUMMARY: In accordance with the
memorandum of January 20, 2021, from
the Assistant to the President and Chief
of Staff, entitled ‘‘Regulatory Freeze
Pending Review,’’ this action
temporarily delays for 60 days the
effective date of part of the final rule
entitled, ‘‘Medicare and Medicaid
Programs; Organ Procurement
Organizations Conditions for Coverage:
Revisions to the Outcome Measure
Requirements for Organ Procurement
Organizations; Final rule’’ published in
the Federal Register on December 2,
2020. We are also providing an
additional 30-day public comment
period.
DATES: The February 1, 2021, effective
date of the rule amending 42 CFR part
486, published at 85 FR 77898 on
December 2, 2020, is delayed to March
30, 2021.
Comment date: To be assured
consideration, comments must be
received at one of the addresses
provided below, by March 4, 2021.
ADDRESSES: In commenting, please refer
to file code CMS–3380–F2.
Comments, including mass comment
submissions, must be submitted in one
of the following three ways (please
choose only one of the ways listed):
1. Electronically. You may submit
electronic comments on this regulation
VerDate Sep<11>2014
15:58 Feb 01, 2021
Jkt 253001
to https://www.regulations.gov. Follow
the ‘‘Submit a comment’’ instructions.
2. By regular mail. You may mail
written comments to the following
address ONLY: Centers for Medicare &
Medicaid Services, Department of
Health and Human Services, Attention:
CMS-3380–F2, P.O. Box 8010,
Baltimore, MD 21244–8010.
Please allow sufficient time for mailed
comments to be received before the
close of the comment period.
3. By express or overnight mail. You
may send written comments to the
following address ONLY: Centers for
Medicare & Medicaid Services,
Department of Health and Human
Services, Attention: CMS-3380–F2, Mail
Stop C4–26–05, 7500 Security
Boulevard, Baltimore, MD 21244–1850.
For information on viewing public
comments, see the beginning of the
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION section.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
Diane Corning, (410) 786–8486; Jesse
Roach, (410) 786–1000; Kristin Shifflett,
(410) 786–4133; CAPT James Cowher,
(410) 786–1948; or Alpha-Banu Wilson,
(410) 786–8687.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Inspection of Public Comments: 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. We post all comments
received before the close of the
comment period on the following
website as soon as possible after they
have been received: https://
www.regulations.gov. Follow the search
instructions on that website to view
public comments. CMS will not post on
Regulations.gov public comments that
make threats to individuals or
institutions or suggest that the
individual will take actions to harm the
individual. CMS continues to encourage
individuals not to submit duplicative
comments. We will post acceptable
comments from multiple unique
commenters even if the content is
identical or nearly identical to other
comments.
Organ Procurement Organizations
Conditions for Coverage: Revisions to
the Outcome Measure Requirements for
Organ Procurement Organizations; Final
rule’’ (85 FR 77898). The December
2020 final rule revises the Organ
Procurement Organizations Conditions
for Coverage to increase donation rates
and organ transplantation rates by
replacing the current outcome measures
with new transparent, reliable, and
objective outcome measures and
increasing competition for open
donation service areas. The effective
date of that rule, except for amendment
number 3, which would have been
February 1, 2021, is now March 30,
2021. We are also providing a 30-day
public comment period. The 60-day
delay in effective date is necessary to
give Department officials the
opportunity for further review of the
issues of fact, law, and policy raised by
this rule. In addition, this action
provides a comment period on the
policies set out in the December 2, 2020
final rule to allow interested parties to
provide comments about issues of fact,
law and policy raised by the rule.
II. Response to Comments
Because of the large number of public
comments we normally receive on
Federal Register documents, we are not
able to acknowledge or respond to them
individually. We will consider all
comments we receive by the date and
time specified in the DATES section of
this preamble, and, when we proceed
with a subsequent document, we will
respond to the comments in the
preamble to that document.
Norris Cochran,
Acting Secretary, Department of Health and
Human Services.
[FR Doc. 2021–02180 Filed 1–29–21; 11:15 am]
BILLING CODE 4120–01–P
I. Background
The January 20, 2021 memorandum
from the Assistant to the President and
Chief of Staff, entitled ‘‘Regulatory
Freeze Pending Review,’’ instructed
Federal agencies to delay the effective
date of rules published in the Federal
Register, but which have not yet taken
effect, for a period of 60 days. On
December 2, 2020, we published a final
rule in the Federal Register entitled
‘‘Medicare and Medicaid Programs;
PO 00000
Frm 00018
Fmt 4700
Sfmt 9990
E:\FR\FM\02FER1.SGM
02FER1
]]>Agencies
[Federal Register Volume 86, Number 20 (Tuesday, February 2, 2021)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 7813-7814]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2021-02181]
=======================================================================
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DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES
Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services
42 CFR Part 423
[CMS-4189-F2]
RIN 0938-AT94
Medicare Program; Secure Electronic Prior Authorization for
Medicare Part D Program; Delay in Effective Date
AGENCY: Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS), Department of
Health and Human Services (HHS).
ACTION: Final rule; delay in effective date.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
SUMMARY: In accordance with the memorandum of January 20, 2021 from the
Assistant to the President and the Chief of Staff, entitled
``Regulatory Review,'' this action temporarily delays for 60 days the
effective date of the December 31, 2020 final rule entitled, ``Medicare
Program; Secure Electronic Prior Authorization For Medicare Part D'',
which published on December 31, 2020.
DATES: The effective date of the final rule amending 42 CFR part 423
published at 85 FR 86824 on December 31, 2020, is delayed from February
1, 2021, to March 30, 2021.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Joella Roland, (410) 786-7638.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Background and Provisions of the Final Rule
The January 20, 2021 memorandum from the Assistant to the President
and Chief of Staff, entitled ``Regulatory Freeze Pending Review,''
instructed Federal agencies to delay the effective date of rules
published in the Federal Register, but which have not yet taken effect,
for a period of 60 days from the date of the memorandum.
The purpose of the final rule is to adopt a new standard for
certain transactions concerning Part D-covered drugs prescribed to Part
D-eligible individuals under the Part D e-prescribing program. Under
this final rule, Part D plan sponsors will be required to support
version 2017071 of the National Council for Prescription Drug Programs
(NCPDP) SCRIPT standard for four electronic Prior Authorization (ePA)
transactions, and prescribers will be required to use that standard
when performing ePA transactions for Part D-covered drugs they wish to
prescribe to Part D-eligible individuals. Part D plans, as defined in
42 CFR 423.4, include Prescription Drug Plans (PDPs) and Medicare
Advantage Prescription Drug Plans (MA-PDs); Part D sponsor, as defined
in 42 CFR 423.4, means the entity sponsoring a Part D plan, MA
organization offering a MA-PD plan, a Programs of All-Inclusive Care
for the Elderly (PACE) organization sponsoring a PACE plan offering
qualified prescription drug coverage, and a cost plan offering
qualified prescription drug coverage. The ePA transaction standard will
provide for the electronic transmission of information between the
prescribing health care professional and Part D plan sponsor to inform
the sponsor's determination as to whether or not a prior authorization
(PA) should be granted. The NCPDP SCRIPT standard version 2017071 was
adopted as a Part D e-prescribing program standard for certain defined
transactions in the April 16, 2018 final rule (83 FR 16440) titled
Medicare Program; Contract Year 2019 Policy and Technical Changes to
the Medicare Advantage, Medicare Cost Plan, Medicare Fee-for-Service,
the Medicare Prescription Drug Benefit Programs, and the PACE Program
that became effective June 15, 2018.
The effective date of that rule, which would have been February 1,
2021, is now effective on March 30, 2021.
The temporary delay in the effective date of this final rule is
necessary to give Department officials the opportunity for further
review and consideration of new regulations, consistent with the
memorandum of
[[Page 7814]]
January 20, 2021, from the Assistant to the President and Chief of
Staff, entitled ``Regulatory Freeze Pending Review.''
Norris Cochran,
Acting Secretary, Department of Health and Human Services.
[FR Doc. 2021-02181 Filed 1-29-21; 11:15 am]
BILLING CODE 4120-01-P
