CMS-10068SupportingStatement-PartA

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Supporting Statement – Part A







Supporting Statement For Paperwork Reduction Act Submissions



Specific Instructions


A.   Background

This survey will be used to measure overall satisfaction of the customer service that the Medicare Ombudsman Group (MOG) provides to Medicare beneficiaries and their representatives.

B.	Justification

The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) stresses a continuing need for setting customer service goals that include providing accurate, timely, and relevant information to its customers.  With these goals in mind, MOG needs to periodically survey its customers that correspond with CMS to ensure that the needs of Medicare beneficiaries are being met.

1. Need and Legal Basis

The need for this previously OMB approved information collection is to further meet the customer service goals that CMS has established and to continue to create a rapport within the Medicare community.

2. Information Users

The information provided will be used by management and staff to measure and improve the quality and timeliness of responses to written and verbal correspondence.

3. Use of Information Technology

This collection will not involve the use of any automated, electronic, mechanical, or other technological collection techniques or forms of information technology.

4. Duplication of Efforts

There was a similar study conducted by CMS in 2001; however, this study was conducted
to measure the overall customer service provided by CMS as a whole.  The information we are requesting is different, because it specifically applies to MOG’s workload.  Also, there was a similar study conducted by the DBICS (previously under MOG) during FY 2004-
2005, FY 2007-2008, 2011-2012, and 2012-2013.  Data from these studies was analyzed and the findings show that there are areas that MOG can improve the service it provides to Medicare beneficiaries.   Therefore, MOG will conduct another survey throughout FY
2014-2015.

5. Small Businesses

Small businesses are not affected by this collection.

6. Less Frequent Collection

This information will be collected as needed to modify MOG’s customer service strategy. If this information was collected less frequently, it would be a disservice to Medicare beneficiaries and their representatives because MOG does not have an alternative way of measuring customer satisfaction.

7. Special Circumstances

There are no special circumstances involved with this information collection request.

8. Federal Register/Outside Consultation

The 60-day Federal Register notice published on June 6, 2014.

9. Payments/Gifts to Respondents

There are no provisions for payments or gifts to respondents.

10. Confidentiality

All information obtained through the survey will be reported in aggregate.  No individual respondent’s information will be reported independently or with identifying information. All identifying information will be removed from analytic files and will be destroyed after the aggregate information is assembled.

11. Sensitive Questions

There are no questions of a sensitive nature in the survey.

12. Burden Estimates (Hours & Wages)

Each quarter, approximately 595 respondents will be surveyed.  The length of the survey
will be approximately 8 minutes.  The length will be based upon previous experience and pre-testing of the survey instrument.

8 minutes per survey x 2380 total respondents   =	317.33 hrs.
60 minutes

13. Capital Costs

There are no capital costs associated with this information collection request.

14. Cost to Federal Government

2380 (sample size) x 4 (quarters) x $0.96 (postage) = $9139.20

15. Changes to Burden

The sample size is larger than the prior collections due to the increase in Medicare beneficiaries.  Therefore, MOG adjusted the sample size accordingly and that increase consequently raised the hour estimate as well as the cost to the federal government.

16. Publication/Tabulation Dates

There are no publication or tabulation dates associated with this package.

17. Expiration Date

CMS would like to display the expiration date.