82 FR 31792 - Privacy Act of 1974; Matching Program

SOCIAL SECURITY ADMINISTRATION

Federal Register Volume 82, Issue 130 (July 10, 2017)

In accordance with the provisions of the Privacy Act, as amended, this notice announces a re-establishment of an existing computer matching program that we are currently conducting with CMS.

[Federal Register Volume 82, Number 130 (Monday, July 10, 2017)]
[Notices]
[Pages 31792-31793]
From the Federal Register Online  [www.thefederalregister.org]
[FR Doc No: 2017-14346]


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SOCIAL SECURITY ADMINISTRATION

[Docket No. SSA 2016-0048]


Privacy Act of 1974; Matching Program

AGENCY: Social Security Administration (SSA).

ACTION: Notice of a New Matching Program.

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SUMMARY: In accordance with the provisions of the Privacy Act, as 
amended, this notice announces a re-establishment of an existing 
computer matching program that we are currently conducting with CMS.

DATES: The deadline to submit comments on the proposed matching program 
is 30 days from the date of publication of this notice. The matching 
program will be effective on July 1, 2017 and will expire on December 
31, 2018.

ADDRESSES: Interested parties may comment on this notice by either 
telefaxing to (410) 966-0869, writing to Mary Ann Zimmerman, Acting 
Executive Director, Office of Privacy and Disclosure, Office of the 
General Counsel, Social Security Administration, 617 Altmeyer Building, 
6401 Security Boulevard, Baltimore, MD 21235-6401, or email at 
[email protected]. All comments received will be available for 
public inspection at this address.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Interested parties may submit general 
questions about the matching program to Mary Ann Zimmerman, Acting 
Executive Director, Office of Privacy and Disclosure, Office of the 
General Counsel, by any of the means shown above.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The Computer Matching and Privacy Protection 
Act of 1988 (Public Law (Pub. L.) 100-503), amended the Privacy Act (5 
U.S.C. 552a) by describing the conditions under which computer matching 
involving the Federal government could be performed and adding certain 
protections for persons applying for, and receiving, Federal benefits. 
Section 7201 of the Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act of 1990 (Pub. L. 
101-508) further amended the Privacy Act regarding protections for such 
persons.
    The Privacy Act, as amended, regulates the use of computer matching 
by Federal agencies when records in a system of records are matched 
with other Federal, State, or local government records. It requires 
Federal agencies involved in computer matching programs to:
    (1) Negotiate written agreements with the other agency or agencies 
participating in the matching programs;
    (2) Obtain approval of the matching agreement by the Data Integrity 
Boards of the participating Federal agencies;
    (3) Publish notice of the computer matching program in the Federal 
Register;
    (4) Furnish detailed reports about matching programs to Congress 
and OMB;

[[Page 31793]]

    (5) Notify applicants and beneficiaries that their records are 
subject to matching; and
    (6) Verify match findings before reducing, suspending, terminating, 
or denying a person's benefits or payments.
    We have taken action to ensure that all of our computer matching 
programs comply with the requirements of the Privacy Act, as amended.

Mary Ann Zimmerman,
Acting Executive Director, Office of Privacy and Disclosure, Office of 
the General Counsel.

PARTICIPATING AGENCIES:
    SSA and CMS

AUTHORITY FOR CONDUCTING THE MATCHING PROGRAM:
    The legal authority for this matching program is section 202 of the 
Act (42 U.S.C. 402), which outlines the requirements for eligibility to 
receive Old-Age, Survivors, and Disability Insurance Benefits under 
Title II of the Act. Section 205(c) of the Act (42 U.S.C. 405) directs 
the Commissioner of Social Security to verify the eligibility of a 
beneficiary.

PURPOSE(S):
    The purpose of this matching program is to set forth the terms, 
conditions, and safeguards under which CMS will disclose to SSA 
Medicare identifying and non-utilization information for Social 
Security Title II beneficiaries aged 90 and above.
    CMS will identify Medicare enrollees whose records have been 
inactive for three or more years. We will use this data as an indicator 
to select and prioritize cases for review to determine continued 
eligibility for benefits under Title II of the Social Security Act 
(Act). We will contact these individuals to verify ongoing eligibility. 
We will refer individual cases of suspected fraud, waste, or abuse to 
the Office of the Inspector General for investigation.

CATEGORIES OF INDIVIDUALS:
    The individuals whose information is involved in this matching 
program are Social Security Title II beneficiaries aged 90 and above. 
CMS will identify Medicare enrollees whose records have been inactive 
for three or more years. We will use this data as an indicator to 
select and prioritize cases for review to determine continue 
eligibility for benefits under Title II of the Act.

CATEGORIES OF RECORDS:
    We will provide CMS with a finder file containing the following 
information for each individual:

    a. Title II Claim Account Number,
    b. Title II Beneficiary Identification Code,
    c. Name, and
    d. Date of birth

    CMS' response file will contain the following information for each 
individual:

    a. CMS File Number
    b. Whether CMS matched Beneficiary
    c. Whether Medicare Used in Last 3 Years
    d. Whether the beneficiary is a part of an Health Maintenance 
Organization
    e. Whether the beneficiary lives in a Nursing Home, as defined in 
42 CFR 483.5
    f. Whether the beneficiary has Private Health Insurance

SYSTEM(S) OF RECORDS:
    We will disclose to CMS information from Master Beneficiary Record 
(MBR) (60-0090), published January 11, 2006 (71 FR 1826) and updated on 
December 10, 2007 (72 FR 69723) and July 5, 2013 (78 FR 40542).
    CMS will disclose to us information from the following SORs: 
National Claims History (NCH) (09-70-0558), published November 20, 2006 
(71 FR 67137); Enrollment Data Base (EDB) (09-70-0502), published 
February 26, 2008 at 73 FR 10249; and Long Term Care--Minimum Data Set 
(MDS) (90-70-0528), published March 19, 2007 at 72 FR 12801.
    SSA's and CMS's SORs have routine uses permitting the disclosures 
needed to conduct this match.

[FR Doc. 2017-14346 Filed 7-7-17; 8:45 am]
 BILLING CODE 4191-02-P