The Consumer Assessment of Healthcare
Providers and Systems (CAHPS) program is a multi-year initiative.
AHRQ first launched the program in October 1995 in response to
concerns about the lack of good information about the quality of
health plans from the enrollees' perspective. Numerous public and
private organizations collected information on enrollee and patient
satisfaction, but the surveys varied from sponsor to sponsor and
often changed from year to year. The CAHPS program was designed to:
oMake it possible to compare survey results across sponsors and
over time; and oGenerate tools and resources that sponsors can use
to produce understandable and usable comparative information for
consumers. Over time, the program has expanded beyond its original
focus on health plans to address a range of health care services
and meet the various needs of health care consumers, purchasers,
health plans, providers, and policymakers Based on a literature
review and an assessment of currently available questionnaires,
AHRQ identified the need to develop a health literacy module for
the CAHPS Hospital Survey. The intent of the planned module is to
examine patients' perspectives on how well health information is
communicated to them by healthcare professionals in the hospital
setting. The objective of the new module is to provide information
to health plans, hospitals, clinicians, group practices, and other
interested parties regarding quality of health information
delivered to patients. The set of questions about health literacy
will be evaluated as supplement to the CAHPS Hospital
Survey.
US Code:
42
USC 299 Name of Law: Healthcare Research and Quality Act of
1999
On behalf of this Federal agency, I certify that
the collection of information encompassed by this request complies
with 5 CFR 1320.9 and the related provisions of 5 CFR
1320.8(b)(3).
The following is a summary of the topics, regarding
the proposed collection of information, that the certification
covers:
(i) Why the information is being collected;
(ii) Use of information;
(iii) Burden estimate;
(iv) Nature of response (voluntary, required for a
benefit, or mandatory);
(v) Nature and extent of confidentiality; and
(vi) Need to display currently valid OMB control
number;
If you are unable to certify compliance with any of
these provisions, identify the item by leaving the box unchecked
and explain the reason in the Supporting Statement.