Creating Options for Veterans Expedited Recovery (COVER) Commission Veterans Focus Groups: Mental Health Services Preferences and Utilization data collection

Forms and Documents

Forms and supporting documents for this ICR

Document	Type	Status	Availability
Vet Focus Group Flyer for OMB submission.docx	Supplementary Document	Uploaded 2019-01-10	Repair queued
Veterans FG Moderator Guide for OMB submission.docx	Supplementary Document	Uploaded 2019-01-10	Repair queued
Screening Form_Veterans Focus Group for OMB submission.docx	Supplementary Document	Uploaded 2019-01-10	Repair queued
Focus Group Veteran info for OMB submission.docx	Supplementary Document	Uploaded 2019-01-10	Repair queued
Focus Group Recruiter info for OMB submission.docx	Supplementary Document	Uploaded 2019-01-10	Repair queued
Section 931 COVER legislation.docx	Supplementary Document	Uploaded 2019-01-10	Repair queued
PRA Finalv2.pdf	Supplementary Document	Uploaded 2019-01-10	Repair queued
COVER Commission Justification A for PRA Clearance_Final.docx	Supporting Statement A	Uploaded 2019-01-10	Repair queued

IC Document Collections

Information collection document groups

IC ID	Collection	Type	Status	Form
234705	COVER Commission Focus Group Veterans Demographics Survey	Other-Survey	New

ICR Details

OMB Control No:	ICR Reference No: 201901-2900-002
Status: Historical Inactive	Previous ICR Reference No:
Agency/Subagency: VA	Agency Tracking No: 2900-NEW
Title: Creating Options for Veterans Expedited Recovery (COVER) Commission Veterans Focus Groups: Mental Health Services Preferences and Utilization data collection
Type of Information Collection: New collection (Request for a new OMB Control Number)	Common Form ICR:  No
Type of Review Request: Emergency	Approval Requested By: 01/31/2019
OIRA Conclusion Action: Improperly submitted	Conclusion Date: 05/10/2019
	Date Received in OIRA: 01/25/2019
Terms of Clearance:

table that charts list comparision

	Inventory as of this Action	Requested	Previously Approved
Expiration Date		6 Months From Approved
Responses	0	0	0
Time Burden (Hours)	0	0	0
Cost Burden (Dollars)	0	0	0

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Abstract: The COVER Commission was established under the Comprehensive Addiction and Recovery Act of 2016 (CARA). The Commission’s purpose is to examine the evidence-based therapy treatment model used by the Secretary of Veterans Affairs for treating mental health conditions of Veterans and the potential benefits of incorporating complementary and integrative health treatments available in non-Department facilities. There are 5 identified duties that the Commission is tasked to evaluate and provide recommendations to the President of the United States, House and Senate Veterans Affairs Committees and the Secretary of VA eighteen months after the establish of the Commission, which will be December 2019. The Commission is requesting approval from the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for a focus group protocol to meet the charges outlined under Duty 2 in the legislation (bolded in table below). The instrument will collect qualitative information from Veterans seeking and utilizing mental health services through VA and non-VA facilities that is not available anywhere else. The survey will be conducted in Focus Group sessions held in each VISN, with 8-10 participants in each session selected from Veterans who volunteer to participate. The main purpose of the focus group discussions is to hear from Veterans about the kinds of outpatient, inpatient, residential, complementary and integrative health (CIH) treatments of mental health concerns (e.g., PTSD, depression, substance use disorder including opioid use, or any other mental health issues) they are receiving or have received in the past at VA or non-VA facilities. The participants will also be asked to discuss their experiences and preferences regarding mental health treatment options, challenges related to seeking mental healthcare, and any suggestions for improvement of services. Each session will last approximately 2 hours.

Emergency Justfication: The Creating Options for Veterans Expedited Recovery (COVER) Commission, established under the Comprehensive Addiction and Recovery Act of 2016 (CARA), supported by the Veterans Health Administration (VHA) Office of Patient Centered Care and Cultural Transformation, the Office of Mental Health and Suicide Prevention, and the Office of Strategic Integration|Veterans Engineering Resource Center, requests emergency clearance to “conduct a patient centered survey within each of the Veterans Integrated Service Networks” as legislated in CARA, Section 931(b)(2). Subsequent to the collection of patient centered survey data from Veterans in every VISN, the COVER Commission is required to prepare a final report within the timeframe mandated in Section 931(e)(2) “Not later than 18 months after the first meeting of the Commission, the Commission shall submit to the Committee on Veterans’ Affairs of the House of Representatives and the Senate, the President, and the Secretary of Veterans Affairs.” As described in Section 931(e)(2)(C), a portion of that final report is to include “The findings of the patient-centered survey conducted within each of the Veterans Integrated Service Networks pursuant to subsection (b)(2).” The first meeting of the COVER Commission was in July 2018; therefore, the survey must be completed, data analyzed, outcomes reviewed, and resulting recommendations developed in preparation of the final report that must be submitted, as directed, by December 2019. The COVER Commission will collect the survey data through moderated Focus Group sessions held within each VISN, inviting 8-10 volunteer Veterans to participate in each session, for a total of approximately 200 Veterans being surveyed using this modality. Emergency clearance is requested because data collection must begin quickly to meet the COVER final report deadline of December 31, 2019. The use of normal OMB clearance procedures is likely to cause this statutory deadline to be missed. In order to conduct the Focus Group survey across all VISNs within Veterans Health Administration, OMB approval is requested by mid-January 2019. At that time, Focus Group locations can be identified, logistics arranged, Veterans notified, and participants selected so the first of the Focus Group sessions can begin by January 31, 2019. This timeline allows for 6 months (180 days) of data collection across the VHA enterprise, followed by time required to aggregate and analyze the findings for COVER Commissioners’ deliberation regarding the outcomes and the resulting recommendations that will be included in the final report being developed for submission by the December 2019 deadline.

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Authorizing Statute(s): PL: Pub.L. 114 - 198 931 Name of Law: Comprehensive Addiction and Recovery Act of 2016 (CARA)
  

Citations for New Statutory Requirements: None

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Associated Rulemaking Information
RIN:	Stage of Rulemaking:	Federal Register Citation:	Date:
	Not associated with rulemaking

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Federal Register Notices & Comments

Did the Agency receive public comments on this ICR? No

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Number of Information Collection (IC) in this ICR: 1

table that charts list of burden

IC Title	Form No.	Form Name
COVER Commission Focus Group Veterans Demographics Survey

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Burden increases because of Program Change due to Agency Discretion: Yes

Burden Increase Due to: Miscellaneous Actions

Burden decreases because of Program Change due to Agency Discretion: No

Burden Reduction Due to:

Short Statement: This is a new information collection that is mandated by legislation

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Annual Cost to Federal Government: $113,600

Does this IC contain surveys, censuses, or employ statistical methods? No

Does this ICR request any personally identifiable information (see OMB Circular No. A-130 for an explanation of this term)? Please consult with your agency's privacy program when making this determination.     No

Does this ICR include a form that requires a Privacy Act Statement (see 5 U.S.C. §552a(e)(3))? Please consult with your agency's privacy program when making this determination.     No

Is this ICR related to the Affordable Care Act [Pub. L. 111-148 & 111-152]? No

Is this ICR related to the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act, [Pub. L. 111-203]? No

Is this ICR related to the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (ARRA)? No

Is this ICR related to the Pandemic Response? Uncollected

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Common Form ICR:  No

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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:

(a) It is necessary for the proper performance of agency functions;

(b) It avoids unnecessary duplication;

(c) It reduces burden on small entities;

(d) It uses plain, coherent, and unambiguous language that is understandable to respondents;

(e) Its implementation will be consistent and compatible with current reporting and recordkeeping practices;

(f) It indicates the retention periods for recordkeeping requirements;

(g) It informs respondents of the information called for under 5 CFR 1320.8 (b)(3) about:

(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;

(h) It was developed by an office that has planned and allocated resources for the efficient and effective management and use of the information to be collected.

(i) It uses effective and efficient statistical survey methodology (if applicable); and

(j) It makes appropriate use of information technology.

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.

Certification Date: 01/25/2019

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