Abstract (2000 characters maximum) The
SHIP-SMP Survey of One-on-One Assistance, formerly the National
Beneficiary Survey of State Health Insurance Assistance Program
(SHIP) will gauge individuals’ satisfaction with the services they
receive from the State Health Insurance Assistance (SHIP) and
Senior Medicare Patrol (SMP) Programs. The survey will be the first
of its kind to ascertain the quality and effectiveness of the
services provided by the SHIP and SMP and to determine if
beneficiaries are receiving accurate, relevant and timely
information. The survey will be conducted over a three-year period
with multiple sites in each of the 50 states and the territories of
Guam, Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands being surveyed once. The
SHIP program satisfaction survey will be conducted on a sample of
beneficiaries who received assistance/counseling during two points
in the year (one week in the spring and one week during the Annual
Medicare Open Enrollment Period). The SMP program satisfaction
survey will focus on education session presentations to determine
if the target audience is satisfied with the information they are
receiving. The results from these surveys will be used to measure
satisfaction among individuals who receive assistance/counseling or
among individuals who attend SMP education sessions, as well, as
how the program can be improved to provide better service to its
target population. The information obtained from this survey will
be used by federal and regional employees of the Administration for
Community Living (ACL), part of the Department of Health and Human
Services. Specifically, the information will be used to assess
customer satisfaction with one on one assistance services delivered
by ACL’s SHIP and SMP programs. The results of the survey will be
used to assess the need for overall agency improvements, including
the reallocation of resources, revisions to certain agency
processes and policies, and/or development of guidance related to
the agency’s customer services. The results of the survey could
also lead to improvements for individual Medicare beneficiaries, as
improved customer service by the agency will lead to more
appropriate Medicare choices for individual citizens, leading to
monetary savings for both the individual and the SHIP/SMP program.
Ultimately, these changes should improve the services ACL provides
to the public.
US Code:
42
USC 241 Name of Law: Public Health Service Act
The revised survey collection
focuses on an annual, national survey of 800 response per year. The
previous version of this survey required each state/territory to
collect 75 responses once every three years, resulting in an
average annual response total of 1,350 responses. There is a
program change of -100 annual burden hours and an adjustment
decrease of -550 annual responses. This change both reduces the
annual survey burden while also allowing ACL to monitor overall
programmatic progress on an annual basis.
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.