[Federal Register: August 24, 2007 (Volume 72, Number 164)]
[Notices]
[Page 48648-48649]
From the Federal Register Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]
[DOCID:fr24au07-74]
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DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES
Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services
Medicaid Program; Notice of Single-Source Grant Award to the
States of Alabama, Louisiana, and Mississippi for the Grant Entitled
``Deficit Reduction Act-Hurricane Katrina Healthcare Related Provider
Stabilization''
AGENCY: Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS).
ACTION: Single-Source Non-Competitive Supplemental Awards.
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Funding Amount: $60,000,000.
Period of Performance: June 18, 2007--September 30, 2009.
CFDA: 93.779.
Authority: Section 6201(a)(4) of the Deficit Reduction Act of
2005 (DRA).
Purpose
The Secretary has authorized an additional $60 million in
supplemental DRA grant funds to be made available to the States of
Alabama, Louisiana, and Mississippi. The methodology is based on the
relative share of each eligible general acute care hospital's,
inpatient psychiatric facility's (IPF), community mental health
center's (CMHC) and skilled nursing facility's (SNF) total Medicare
inpatient payments in the FEMA designated counties in calendar year
2006 (the latest and most complete year of Medicare billing data
available to CMS). As a result, this funding is being allocated for
each State in the following proportions: 44 percent to Louisiana
($26,223,040), 38 percent to
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Mississippi ($23,243,995) and 17 percent to Alabama ($10,532,965).
This supplemental grant program is to fund State payments to
general, acute care hospitals, IPFs, CMHCs, and SNFs in impacted
communities that face financial pressures because of changing wage
rates that are not yet reflected in Medicare PPS payment methodologies.
The grant funds must be used by the States to make payments to all
Medicare participating general acute care hospitals, IPFs, CMHCs and
SNFs that are currently paid under a Medicare PPS in the impacted
communities. States have some flexibility in determining the
methodology to determine the timing and amount of provider payments,
but the methodology must reflect each provider's relative share of
total Medicare payments during a specified period of time.
Grant funds may not be distributed to general acute care hospitals,
IPFs, CMHCs and SNFs that are not in operation. States' payment
methodologies should specify the relevant time periods and any other
factors that will be considered in distributing available grant funds
according to the principles specified above, and are subject to
approval by CMS.
Under the authority of section 6201(a)(4) of the DRA of 2005, the
Secretary, Department of Health and Human Services, has invoked his
authority to restore health care in impacted communities affected by
Hurricane Katrina by offering this unique funding opportunity which
will enable States to make payments to assist general acute care
hospitals, IPFs, CMHCs, and SNFs that are paid under a Medicare PPS,
with the financial pressures that may result from changing wage rates
in those impacted communities.
Louisiana, Mississippi and Alabama are the only states with
knowledge and ability to administer a grant designed to affect impacted
communities in their states. For the reasons cited above, the Secretary
has directed the CMS to offer supplemental single-source awards to the
States of Louisiana, Alabama and Mississippi.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Wendy J. Taparanskas, Ph.D., Health
Insurance Specialist, Office of the Center Director, Centers for
Medicaid and State Operations, Centers for Medicare & Medicaid
Services, Mail Stop S2-26-12, 7500 Security Boulevard, Baltimore, MD
21244, (410) 786-5245.
Authority: Section 6201(a)(4) of the Deficit Reduction Act of
2005 (DRA).
Dated: July 2, 2007.
Leslie V. Norwalk,
Acting Administrator, Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services.
[FR Doc. E7-16579 Filed 8-23-07; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4120-01-P