CMS has determined that asking a short series of COVID-19 related questions as a supplement to the Medicare Current Beneficiary Survey is essential to CMSâ emergency response to the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic. Specifically, self-reported data from beneficiaries who
participate on the MCBS will provide unique and critical COVID-19 measures that are not available in CMS administrative data. For example, CMS has provided valuable aggregate data from Medicare Fee-for-Service claims data, Medicare Advantage encounter data, and Medicare
enrollment information3. Self-reported data obtained through the MCBS COVID-19 Supplement will provide additional measures that can be provided only by interviewing Medicare beneficiaries.
MCBS respondents, by definition, are most at risk for underlying conditions that may lead to more severe COVID-19 complications. Since the MCBS is a nationally representative sample of all Medicare beneficiaries, CMS has determined that a MCBS Fall COVID-19 Supplement is a unique vehicle to further assess and understand the COVID-19 pandemic. Implementing the MCBS Fall COVID-19 Supplement no later than October 2020 will allow for data to begin to be
released to the public by December 2020. Because the survey must remain in the field for multiple weeks to complete data collection, launching the survey later than the beginning of October is not feasible to provide data by the end of the year.
Data collection for the Fall COVID-19 Supplement to be administered by phone of all MCBS survey respondents will begin October 5, 2020 for a 5 week period. Once data collection is completed, approximately 5 weeks is needed for data processing, data review, quality control, weighting and development of preliminary estimates which will be released to the public by mid-December. This will be followed by data releases in 2021 as part of the MCBS 2019 Survey File Limited Data Set. Access to disclosure protected data is also planned through a special stand-alone 2019 MCBS COVID Public Use File in order to provide the data in the most expeditious manner to data users both internal to and external to CMS.
With the emergence of the COVID-19 pandemic in the U.S., CMS is uniquely positioned to collect timely and vital information on how the pandemic is impacting the Medicare population by utilizing the MCBS.
The MCBS is a continuous, multi-purpose survey of a representative national sample of the Medicare population, including the population of beneficiaries aged 65 and over and beneficiaries aged 64 and below with eligible disabilities, residing in the United States (it is collected under 0938-0568, expiration 08/31/2022). MCBS beneficiaries, by definition, are most at risk for underlying conditions that may lead to more severe COVID-19 complications. This request for emergency clearance approval proposes to add the Fall COVID-19 Supplement to the MCBS Fall 2020 Round 88 data collection. By selecting MCBS respondents to participate in the Fall COVID-19 Supplement, CMS can reduce the burden of the questionnaire by only needing to ask questions directly related to the impact of the pandemic.
CMS requests that OMB consider approving the emergency clearance request by August 7, 2020. This date is based on approximately an 8 week accelerated schedule to prepare for data collection (2 weeks to finalize case management and questionnaire programming specifications, 4 weeks for programming and user acceptance testing, and 2 weeks for final systems integration testing, during which remote training of interviewers will also be conducted). These steps must be done concurrently and 8 weeks is the shortest period of time that will result in a fully developed and tested instrument.
Data collection for the Fall COVID-19 Supplement to be administered by phone of all MCBS survey respondents will begin October 5, 2020 for a 5 week period. Once data collection is completed, approximately 5 weeks is needed for data processing, data review, quality control, weighting and development of preliminary estimates which will be released to the public by mid-December. This will be followed by data releases in 2021 as part of the MCBS 2019 Survey File Limited Data Set. Access to disclosure protected data is also planned through a special stand-alone 2019 MCBS COVID Public Use File in order to provide the data in the most expeditious manner to data users both internal to and external to CMS.
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.
Form P-0015A Fall COVID-19 Supplement
Responses to Public Comments.docx
Fall COVID-19 Supplement