Unknown. Final rule
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/register/2004/12/30/04-28545A research copy — for the controlling text, always check the official state or federal source. Not legal advice.
--- schema: federal-register doc_type: fedreg source_file: FR-2004-12-30.xml --- 69 250 Thursday, December 30, 2004 Contents AID Agency for International Development NOTICES Committees; establishment, renewal, termination, etc.: Voluntary Foreign Aid Advisory Committee, 78385 04-28606 Agricultural Agricultural Marketing Service RULES Onions grown in— South Texas, 78296-78298 04-28631 PROPOSED RULES Milk marketing orders: Arizona-Las Vegas, 78355-78359 04-28630 Pacific Northwest, 78351-78355 04-28629 Agriculture Agriculture Department See Agricultural Marketing Service See Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service See Food and Nutrition Service See Forest Service Animal Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service NOTICES Agency information collection activities; proposals, submissions, and approvals, 78385-78386 E4-3898 Blind Blind or Severely Disabled, Committee for Purchase From People Who Are See Committee for Purchase From People Who Are Blind or Severely Disabled Centers Centers for Disease Control and Prevention NOTICES Agency information collection activities; proposals, submissions, and approvals, 78412-78419 04-28608 04-28609 04-28610 04-28611 04-28612 04-28613 04-28617 04-28618 Grants and cooperative agreements; availability, etc.:
Youth Violence Prevention Through Community-Level Change Program, 78419-78426 04-28619 Meetings: Tuberculosis Elimination Advisory Council, 78426 04-28615 Centers Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services RULES Group health plans and insurance issuers; access, portability, and renewability requirements, 78719-78799 04-28112 Medicare: Hospital inpatient prospective payment systems and 2005 FY rates Correction, 78525-78717 04-28128 Hospital outpatient prospective payment system and 2005 CY payment rates Correction, 78315-78335 04-28253 Medicare+Choice program; managed care provisions; correction, 78336-78338 04-28155 PROPOSED RULES Health coverage portability; tolling certain time periods and interaction with Family and Medical Leave Act, 78799-78825 04-28113 Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act; benefit-specific waiting periods, 78824-78827 04-28114 NOTICES Clinical Laboratories Improvement Amendments programs:
National accreditation organizations; approval— American Association of Blood Banks, 78426-78428 04-28152 Medicaid and Medicare: Program issuances and coverage decisions; quarterly listing, 78428-78442 04-28156 Medicare: Medicare Prescription Drug, Improvement, and Modernization Act of 2003, implementation— Regulations publication timeline; extension exception and transition period, 78442-78444 04-28158 National accreditation organizations; approval— Medicare Advantage local preferred provider organizations, 78444-78445 04-28154 Skilled nursing facilities prospective payment system and consolidate billing; update; correction, 78445-78464 04-28157 Meetings:
Medicare— Ambulatory Payment Classification Groups Advisory Panel, 78464-78466 04-28151 Applications for new medical services and technologies add-on payments under hospital inpatient prospective payment system (2006 FY); town hall meeting, 78466-78468 04-28153 Coast Guard Coast Guard RULES Drawbridge operations: Connecticut, 78306-78307 04-28553 New York, 78306 04-28547 Ports and waterways safety: Chicago River Main Branch, IL; safety zone, 78310-78312 04-28550 East Rockaway Inlet to Atlantic Beach Bridge, Nassau County, Long Island, NY; regulated navigation area, 78307-78310 04-28549 PROPOSED RULES Drawbridge operations:
Virginia, 78373-78375 04-28548 NOTICES Meetings: Houston/Galveston Navigation Safety Advisory Committee, 78470 04-28551 Vessel inspection: Towing vessels; safety management; public meetings, 78471-78472 04-28614 Commerce Commerce Department See National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration See Technology Administration NOTICES Grants and cooperative agreements; availability, etc.: Pre-award notification requirements, 78389-78396 04-28635 Committee for Purchase Committee for Purchase From People Who Are Blind or Severely Disabled NOTICES Procurement list; additions and deletions, 78388-78389 04-28621 04-28622 Comptroller Comptroller of the Currency NOTICES Agency information collection activities; proposals, submissions, and approvals, 78522 04-28633 Copyright Copyright Office, Library of Congress NOTICES Satellite royalty funds:
Satellite carrier compulsory license; rate adjustment, 78482-78483 04-28605 Education Education Department NOTICES Agency information collection activities; proposals, submissions, and approvals, 78400 04-28563 Meetings: Indian Education National Advisory Council, 78400-78401 04-28616 Employee Employee Benefits Security Administration RULES Group health plans and insurance issuers; access, portability, and renewability requirements, 78719-78799 04-28112 PROPOSED RULES Health coverage portability; tolling certain time periods and interaction with Family and Medical Leave Act, 78799-78825 04-28113 Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act; benefit-specific waiting periods, 78824-78827 04-28114 Employment Employment and Training Administration NOTICES Adjustment assistance:
Alexvale/Kincaid Furniture, 78476 04-28568 Arista Beaver Brook Circuits, 78476 04-28572 Arrow Electronics, Inc., 78477 04-28571 California Cedar Products Co., 78477 04-28569 Coats American, Inc., 78477 04-28570 Interdynamics, Inc., et. al., 78477-78479 04-28567 Agency information collection activities; proposals, submissions, and approvals, 78479-78481 E4-3900 E4-3901 04-28574 Employment Employment Standards Administration NOTICES Agency information collection activities; proposals, submissions, and approvals, 78481-78482 04-28575 Energy Energy Department See Federal Energy Regulatory Commission See Western Area Power Administration EPA Environmental Protection Agency RULES Air quality implementation plans; approval and promulgation; various States:
New Mexico, 78312-78315 04-28501 PROPOSED RULES Air quality implementation plans; approval and promulgation; various States: New Mexico, 78375 04-28502 NOTICES Environmental statements; availability, etc.: Agency statements— Comment availability, 78409 04-28603 Weekly receipts, 78409-78410 04-28604 Meetings: Exposure Modeling Work Group, 78410-78411 04-28601 Scientific Counselors Board, 78411-78412 04-28602 Executive Executive Office of the President See Presidential Documents See Trade Representative, Office of United States FAA Federal Aviation Administration RULES Airworthiness directives:
Empresa Brasileira de Aeronautica, S.A. (EMBRAER), 78300-78303 04-28707 Airworthiness standards: Special conditions— Dessault Aviation Model Falcon Fan Jet, Falcon Fan Jet series D, E, and F, and Mystere-Falcon Models 20-C5, 20-D5, 20-E5, 20-F5, and 200 series airplanes, 78298-78300 04-28556 PROPOSED RULES Airworthiness directives: Pratt & Whitney, 78359-78370 04-28385 Class E airspace, 78370-78373 04-28554 04-28555 NOTICES Agency information collection activities; proposals, submissions, and approvals, 04-28558 78520-78521 04-28559 FCC Federal Communications Commission RULES Common carrier services:
Communications disruptions; reporting requirements Effective date, 78338-78339 04-28504 Telephone Consumer Protection Act of 1991; implementation— Autodialed or prerecorded message calls to wireless numbers; national do-not-call registry; safe harbor provisions; effective date, 78339 04-28505 Federal Energy Federal Energy Regulatory Commission NOTICES Complaints filed: BP West Coast Products LLC et al., 78405 E4-3885 Electric rate and corporate regulation filings, 78405-78407 E4-3902 Hydroelectric applications, 78407 E4-3886 Meetings:
Crown Landing, LLC; technical conference, 78407-78408 E4-3905 Gulfterra Texas Pipeline, LP; technical conference, 78408 E4-3903 Market based rates for public utilities; technical conference, 78408 E4-3904 *Applications, hearings, determinations, etc.:* CenterPoint Energy-Mississippi River Transmission Corp., 78401 E4-3894 Columbia Gas Transmission Corp., 78401 E4-3893 Columbia Gulf Transmission Co., E4-3890 E4-3891 78402-78403 E4-3892 Cranberry Pipeline Corp., 78403 E4-3889 Gulfstream Natural Gas System, L.L.C., 78403 E4-3888 Iroquois Gas Transmission System, L.P., 78403-78404 E4-3895 Portland General Electric Co., 78404 E4-3887 Transcontinental Gas Pipe Line Corp., 78404-78405 E4-3896 Federal Railroad Federal Railroad Administration NOTICES Meetings:
Railroad Safety Advisory Committee, 78521 04-28560 Financial Financial Management Service See Fiscal Service Fiscal Fiscal Service NOTICES Interest rates: Renegotiation Board and prompt payment rates, 78522-78523 04-28219 Food Food and Drug Administration RULES Animal drugs, feeds, and related products: Chlortetracycline, 78305-78306 04-28578 Tilmicosin, 78306 04-28576 Food additives: Secondary direct food additives— Acidified sodium clorite solutions, 78303-78305 04-28577 NOTICES Biological product licenses:
Nonclinical and clinical electronic datasets pilot project; request for volunteers, 78468-78469 04-28579 Universal Reagents, Inc.; revocation, 78469-78470 04-28580 Food Food and Nutrition Service PROPOSED RULES Child nutrition programs: National School Lunch, School Breakfast, and Special Milk Programs; procurement requirements, 78340-78351 04-28532 NOTICES Child nutrition programs: Summer Food Service Program— Reimbursment rates (2005 CY), 78386-78387 04-28587 Forest Forest Service NOTICES Environmental statements; notice of intent:
White River National Forest, CO; Southern Rockies Lynx Amendment process, 78387-78388 04-28659 Meetings: Resource Advisory Committees— Crook County, 78388 04-27951 Health Health and Human Services Department See Centers for Disease Control and Prevention See Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services See Food and Drug Administration Homeland Homeland Security Department See Coast Guard Housing Housing and Urban Development Department PROPOSED RULES Community planning and development programs; consolidated submissions:
Consolidated plan; revisions and updates, 78829-78843 04-28430 NOTICES Grants and cooperative agreements; availability, etc.: Homeless assistance; excess and surplus Federal properties, 78472 04-28440 Interior Interior Department See Land Management Bureau IRS Internal Revenue Service RULES Excise taxes: Group health plans and insurance insurers; access, portability, and renewability requirements, 78719-78799 04-28112 PROPOSED RULES Excise taxes: Health coverage portability; tolling certain time periods and interaction with Family and Medical Leave Act, 78799-78825 04-28113 Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act; benefit-specific waiting periods, 78824-78827 04-28114 International International Boundary and Water Commission, United States and Mexico NOTICES Environmental statements; availability, etc.:
San Diego, CA; South Bay International Wastewater Treatment Plant, 78483-78484 04-28378 International International Trade Commission NOTICES Import investigations: Pet food treats, 78473-78474 04-28634 Polychloroprene rubber from— Japan, 78474-78475 04-28588 Labor Labor Department See Employee Benefits Security Administration See Employment and Training Administration See Employment Standards Administration NOTICES Agency information collection activities; proposals, submissions, and approvals, 78475-78476 04-28620 Land Land Management Bureau NOTICES Meetings:
Pinedale Anticline Working Group task groups, 78472-78473 04-28589 04-28590 Library Library of Congress See Copyright Office, Library of Congress Mexico Mexico and United States, International Boundary and Water Commission See International Boundary and Water Commission, United States and Mexico NASA National Aeronautics and Space Administration NOTICES Meetings: Robotic and Human Lunar Exploration Strategic Roadmap Committee, 78485 04-28624 Universe Exploration Strategic Roadmap Committee, 78485 04-28623 National Credit National Credit Union Administration NOTICES Grants and cooperative agreements; availability, etc.:
Community Development Revolving Loan Fund for Credit Unions, 78485 04-28583 National Labor National Labor Relations Board NOTICES Senior Executive Service: Performance Review Board; membership, 78485-78486 04-28599 NOAA National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration NOTICES Fishery conservation and management: West Coast and Western Pacific fisheries— Bigeye tuna, 78397-78398 04-28632 Meetings: Mid-Atlantic Fishery Management Council, 78398 E4-3897 Office of U.S. Trade Office of United States Trade Representative See Trade Representative, Office of United States Personnel Personnel Management Office RULES Health benefits, Federal employees:
Two-option limitation modification and coverage continuation for annuitants whose plan terminates an option, 78295-78296 04-28545 Presidential Presidential Documents ADMINISTRATIVE ORDERS HELP Commission Act; assignment of functions implementing (Memorandum of December 8, 2004), 78845-78847 04-28730 Jerusalem Embassy Act; suspension of limitations (Presidential Determination No. 2005-14 of December 15, 2004), 78851 04-28732 Palestinian Authority; waiver of restrictions on providing funds (Presidential Determination No. 2005-10 of December 8, 2004), 78849 04-28731 Public Public Debt Bureau See Fiscal Service Research Research and Special Programs Administration PROPOSED RULES Hazardous materials:
Transportation— External product piping on cargo tanks transporting flammable liquids; safety requirements, 78375-78384 04-28561 SEC Securities and Exchange Commission NOTICES Meetings; Sunshine Act, 78486 04-28699 Self-regulatory organizations; proposed rule changes: American Stock Exchange LLC, 78486-78499 04-28600 Municipal Securities Rulemaking Board, 78499-78508 04-28581 National Association of Securities Dealers, Inc., 78508-78511 04-28582 New York Stock Exchange, Inc., 78511-78514 E4-3899 Social Social Security Administration NOTICES Agency information collection activities; proposals, submissions, and approvals, 78514-78515 04-28562 State State Department NOTICES Biometric Visa Program:
Nonimmigrant and immigrant visa applicants; biometric identifiers collection, 78515 04-28566 Meetings: International Telecommunication Advisory Committee, 78515-78516 04-28564 Presidential permits: Border Trade Association Foundation; commercial cargo lanes construction, operation and maintenance at Mariposa Port of Entry, Nogales, AZ, 78516 04-28565 Surface Surface Transportation Board NOTICES Railroad operation, acquisition, construction, etc.: South Buffalo Railway Co., 78521 04-28486 Technology Technology Administration NOTICES Committees; establishment, renewal, termination, etc.:
United States-Russia Innovation Council on High Technologies, 78398-78400 04-28395 Trade Trade Representative, Office of United States NOTICES Trade Act of 1974: Chinese currency valuation, 78516-78517 04-28625 World Trade Organization: Dispute settlement panel establishment requests— European Communities; countervailing duty measures concerning certain products, 78517-78518 04-28626 Thailand; shrimp; provisional antidumping measures, 78518-78519 04-28627 Transportation Transportation Department See Federal Aviation Administration See Federal Railroad Administration See Research and Special Programs Administration See Surface Transportation Board NOTICES Agency information collection activities; proposals, submissions, and approvals, 78519-78520 04-28546 Treasury Treasury Department See Comptroller of the Currency See Fiscal Service See Internal Revenue Service Veterans Veterans Affairs Department NOTICES Agency information collection activities; proposals, submissions, and approvals, 04-28591 78523-78524 04-28592 04-28595 04-28596 Western Western Area Power Administration NOTICES Energy planning and management program:
Parker-Davis Project; post-2008 resource pool; power allocation procedures and applications call, 78408-78409 04-28607 Separate Parts In This Issue Part II Health and Human Services Department, Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, 78525-78717 04-28128 Part III Health and Human Services Department, Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services; Labor Department, Employee Benefits Security Administration; Treasury Department, Internal Revenue Service, 78719-78827 04-28112 04-28113 04-28114 Part IV Housing and Urban Development Department, 78829-78843 04-28430 Part V Executive Office of the President, Presidential Documents, 78845-78847, 78849, 78851 04-28730 04-28731 04-28732 Reader Aids Consult the Reader Aids section at the end of this issue for phone numbers, online resources, finding aids, reminders, and notice of recently enacted public laws.
To subscribe to the Federal Register Table of Contents LISTSERV electronic mailing list, go to http://listserv.access.gpo.gov and select Online mailing list archives, FEDREGTOC-L, Join or leave the list (or change settings); then follow the instructions. 69 250 Thursday, December 30, 2004 Rules and Regulations OFFICE OF PERSONNEL MANAGEMENT 5 CFR Part 890 RIN 3206-AK48 Federal Employees Health Benefits Program: Modification of Two-Option Limitation for Health Benefits Plans and Continuation of Coverage for Annuitants Whose Plan Terminates an Option AGENCY:
Office of Personnel Management. ACTION: Final rule. SUMMARY: The Office of Personnel Management
(OPM)is issuing a final rule modifying the prohibition against Federal Employees Health Benefits
(FEHB)plans offering more than 2 options and also modifying what happens when an annuitant's health plan terminates an option, and the annuitant doesn't make a health benefits change. DATES: Effective December 30, 2004. FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Karen Leibach,
(202)606-0004. SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: On June 7, 2004, OPM published an interim rule in the **Federal Register** (69 FR 31721) modifying the 2-option limitation on health plans to allow FEHB plans to offer 2 options plus a high deductible plan. The regulation also modified what happens when an annuitant whose plan terminates an option doesn't make a health benefits change. Such an annuitant will only be transferred to the plan's remaining option if that option reasonably approximates the terminating option; otherwise, the annuitant will be transferred to the standard option of the Blue Cross and Blue Shield Service Benefit Plan. We received comments from 1 employee union, 1 Federal agency, and 1 FEHB carrier. One commenter opposed allowing high deductible plans and health savings accounts
(HSAs)in the FEHB Program. This commenter believes that a high deductible/HSA plan will attract younger healthier enrollees, leaving older, less healthy people in traditional health plans, which will drive up premiums. The commenter also believes that people will move back and forth, moving into traditional plans in years when they anticipate more medical expenses and moving back into the high deductible plan after they've had their treatment, again increasing premiums in the traditional plans. We believe that offering high deductible/HSA plans is consistent with OPM's overall goal of providing FEHB enrollees with benefit options that allow greater personal decision-making and flexibility when choosing health coverage for themselves and their families. OPM's experience with consumer-driven health plans has not shown any negative impact on the FEHB premiums. We believe that people will use the coverage as intended: spending the accounts for routine health care costs, banking the difference for future needs, and relying on the insurance portion for a catastrophic event. One commenter said agencies would have problems programming their computer systems to accept an enrollment code ending in something other than a 1, 2, 4, or 5; the commenter suggested assigning a completely new enrollment code to any high deductible/HSA plans. The commenter also suggested that to avoid confusion these plans should be treated as separate plans, rather than options of existing plans, and should have separate brochures. These are operational issues outside the scope of the regulations. We have forwarded the suggestions to the contracting offices. One commenter expressed concern that the term “reasonably approximate” wasn't defined, in relation to determining whether an annuitant in a terminating option should be transferred into a plan's remaining option or transferred into the standard option of the Blue Cross and Blue Shield Service Benefit Plan. Whenever a plan terminates—whether it's the whole plan, an option, or a service area enrollment code—OPM notifies agencies and retirement systems of the actions they should take regarding the plan's enrollees. This regulatory change will not require retirement systems (or agencies) to make a determination on their own regarding whether a plan's remaining option reasonably approximates the terminating option. OPM will continue to provide specific instructions regarding terminations. One commenter requested that OPM make it clear whether the regulatory change applies to all plans, including the Blue Cross and Blue Shield Service Benefit Plan. The commenter believes that the Service Benefit should be allowed to offer more than 2 options. The regulation as written could indeed apply to all plans. However, OPM disagrees with the commenter's interpretation of the FEHB statute regarding the Service Benefit Plan. Our interpretation is that the statute limits the Service Benefit Plan to no more than 2 options; the regulatory change does not negate the statutory provision. If at some point the language in the law is changed to allow the Service Benefit Plan to offer more than 2 options, there would be nothing in the regulatory language to preclude them from doing so. Regulatory Flexibility Act I certify that this regulation will not have a significant economic impact on a substantial number of small entities because the regulation only affects health benefits plans and annuitants participating in the Federal Employees Health Benefits Program. Executive Order 12866, Regulatory Review This rule has been reviewed by the Office of Management and Budget in accordance with Executive Order 12866. List of Subjects in 5 CFR Part 890 Administrative practice and procedure, Government employees, Health facilities, Health insurance, Health professionals, Hostages, Iraq, Kuwait, Lebanon, Reporting and recordkeeping requirements, Retirement. Accordingly, under the authority of 5 U.S.C. 8913, OPM is adopting its interim regulations under 5 CFR part 890 as published on June 7, 2004 (69 FR 31721), as a final rule without change. U.S. Office of Personnel Management. Kay Coles James, Director. [FR Doc. 04-28545 Filed 12-29-04; 8:45 am]
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