Agency Information Collection Activities: Submission for OMB Review; Comment Request

Periodically, the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) publishes abstracts of information collection requests under review by the Office of Management and Budget (OMB), in compliance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (44 U.S.C. Chapter 35). To request a copy of the clearance requests submitted to OMB for review, call the HRSA Reports Clearance Office on (301) 443-1129.

The following request has been submitted to the Office of Management and Budget for review under the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995:

Proposed Project: Data System for Organ Procurement and Transplantation Network and Associated Forms (OMB No. 0915-0157)—Revision

Section 372 of the Public Health Service (PHS) Act requires that the Secretary, by contract, provide for the establishment and operation of an Organ Procurement and Transplantation Network (OPTN). The OPTN, among other responsibilities, operates and maintains a national waiting list of individuals requiring organ transplants, maintains a computerized system for matching donor organs with transplant candidates on the waiting list, and operates a 24-hour system to facilitate matching organs with individuals included in the list.

Data for the OPTN data system are collected from transplant hospitals, organ procurement organizations, and tissue-typing laboratories. The information is used to indicate the disease severity of transplant candidates, to monitor compliance of member organizations with OPTN rules and requirements, and to report periodically on the clinical and scientific status of organ donation and transplantation in this country. Data are used to develop transplant, donation and allocation policies, to determine if institutional members are complying with policy, to determine member specific performance, to ensure patient safety when no alternative sources of data exist and to fulfill the requirements of the OPTN Final Rule. The practical utility of the data collection is further enhanced by requirements that the OPTN data must be made available, consistent with applicable laws, for use by OPTN members, the Scientific Registry of Transplant Recipients, the Department of Health and Human Services, and others for evaluation, research, patient information, and other important purposes.

Revisions in the 26 data collection forms are intended to implement approved reduction in data collection for candidates and recipients, to provide additional information specific to pediatric patients, and to clarify existing questions.

Written comments and recommendations concerning the proposed information collection should be sent within 30 days of this notice to: Karen Matsuoka, Human Resources and Housing Branch, Office of Management and Budget, New Executive Office Building, Room 10235, Washington, DC 20503.