30-Day PRA FRN

BILLING CODE: 4510-29-P
DEPARTMENT OF LABOR
Office of the Secretary
Agency Information Collection Activities; Submission for OMB Review; Comment
Request; Notice of Medical Necessity Criteria under the Mental Health Parity and
Addiction Equity Act of 2008
ACTION: Notice.
SUMMARY: On January 31, 2013, the Department of Labor (DOL) will submit the
Employee Benefits Security Administration (EBSA) sponsored information collection
request (ICR) titled, “Notice of Medical Necessity Criteria under the Mental Health
Parity and Addiction Equity Act of 2008,” to the Office of Management and Budget
(OMB) for review and approval for continued use in accordance with the Paperwork
Reduction Act (PRA) of 1995 (44 U.S.C. 3501 et seq.).
DATES: Submit comments on or before March 4, 2013.
ADDRESSES: A copy of this ICR with applicable supporting documentation; including a
description of the likely respondents, proposed frequency of response, and estimated total
burden may be obtained from the RegInfo.gov Web site,
http://www.reginfo.gov/public/do/PRAMain, on February 1, 2013, or by contacting
Michel Smyth by telephone at 202-693-4129 (this is not a toll-free number) or sending an
email to [email protected].
Submit comments about this request to the Office of Information and Regulatory
Affairs, Attn: OMB Desk Officer for DOL-EBSA, Office of Management and Budget,

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Room 10235, 725 17th Street, N.W., Washington, DC 20503, Fax: 202-395-6881 (this is
not a toll-free number), email: [email protected].
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION: Contact Michel Smyth by telephone at 202-693-4129
(this is not a toll-free number) or by email at [email protected].
AUTHORITY: 44 U.S.C. 3507(a)(1)(D).
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The Paul Wellstone and Pete Domenici Mental
Health Parity and Addiction Equity Act of 2008 (MHPAEA), Pub. L. 110-343 Division
C, amends the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 (ERISA), the Public
Health Service Act (PHS Act), and the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 (Code). In 1996,
Congress enacted the Mental Health Parity Act of 1996, which required parity in
aggregate lifetime and annual dollar limits for mental health benefits and medical and
surgical benefits. Those mental health parity provisions and the changes the MHPAEA
made are codified in ERISA section 712, PHS Act section 2705, and Code section 9812.
The MHPAEA and regulations 29 CFR 2590.712(d) require a covered plan administrator
to disclose the criteria for medical necessity determinations with respect to mental health
and substance use disorder benefits. These third-party disclosures are information
collections subject to the PRA.
A Federal agency generally cannot conduct or sponsor a collection of information,
and the public is generally not required to respond to an information collection, unless it
is approved by the OMB under the PRA and displays a currently valid OMB Control
Number. In addition, notwithstanding any other provisions of law, no person shall
generally be subject to penalty for failing to comply with a collection of information that
does not display a valid Control Number. See 5 CFR 1320.5(a) and 1320.6. The DOL

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obtains OMB approval for this information collection under Control Number 1210-0138.
The current approval is scheduled to expire on January 31, 2013; however, it should be
noted that existing information collection requirements submitted to the OMB receive a
month-to-month extension while they undergo review. For additional information, see
the related notice published in the Federal Register on November 27, 2013 (77 FR
70828).
Interested parties are encouraged to send comments to the OMB, Office of
Information and Regulatory Affairs at the address shown in the ADDRESSES section by
March 4, 2013. In order to help ensure appropriate consideration, comments should
mention OMB Control Number 1210-0138. The OMB is particularly interested in
comments that:
•

Evaluate whether the proposed collection of information is necessary for

the proper performance of the functions of the agency, including whether the information
will have practical utility;
•

Evaluate the accuracy of the agency’s estimate of the burden of the

proposed collection of information, including the validity of the methodology and
assumptions used;
•

Enhance the quality, utility, and clarity of the information to be collected;

•

Minimize the burden of the collection of information on those who are to

and

respond, including through the use of appropriate automated, electronic, mechanical, or
other technological collection techniques or other forms of information technology, e.g.,
permitting electronic submission of responses.

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Agency: DOL-EBSA.
Title of Collection: Notice of Medical Necessity Criteria under the Mental Health
Parity and Addiction Equity Act of 2008.
OMB Control Number: 1210-0138.
Affected Public: Private Sector—businesses or other for-profits and not-for-profit
institutions.
Total Estimated Number of Respondents: 420,400.
Total Estimated Number of Responses: 420,400.
Total Estimated Annual Burden Hours: 900.
Total Estimated Annual Other Costs Burden: $569,614.
Dated: January 25, 2013.

Michel Smyth,
Departmental Clearance Officer.

[FR Doc. 2013-02142 Filed 01/31/2013 at 8:45 am; Publication Date: 02/01/2013]

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