[Federal Register: July 25, 2003 (Volume 68, Number 143)]
[Notices]
[Page 44091]
From the Federal Register Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]
[DOCID:fr25jy03-82]
[[Page 44091]]
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DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES
Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services
[CMS-3117-N]
Medicare Program; Meeting of the Medicare Coverage Advisory
Committee--September 9, 2003
AGENCY: Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS), HHS.
ACTION: Notice.
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SUMMARY: This notice announces a public meeting of the Medicare
Coverage Advisory Committee (the Committee). The Committee provides
advice and recommendations to us about clinical issues. The Committee
advises us on whether adequate evidence exists to determine whether
specific medical items and services are reasonable and necessary under
the Medicare statute. The Committee will discuss and make
recommendations concerning the quality of the evidence and related
issues for the use of ocular photodynamic therapy (OPT) with
verteporfin in routine clinical use in the population of Medicare
beneficiaries who have age-related macular degeneration (AMD) and
occult with no classic choroidal neovascularization (CNV). Notice of
this action is given under the Federal Advisory Committee Act (5 U.S.C.
App. 2, section 10(a)(1) and (a)(2)).
DATES: The public meeting announced will be held on Tuesday, September
9, 2003 from 7:30 a.m. until 3:30 p.m., e.d.t.
Deadline for Presentations and Comments: Interested persons may
present data, information, or views orally or in writing, on issues
pending before the Committee. Written presentations and comments must
be submitted to the Executive Secretary, Michelle Atkinson, by
telephone at 410-786-2881 or by e-mail at matkinson@cms.hhs.gov by
August 21, 2003, 5 p.m., e.d.t.
Special Accommodations: Persons attending the meeting who are
hearing or visually impaired, or have a condition that requires special
assistance or accommodations, are asked to notify the Executive
Secretary by August 21, 2003 (see FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT).
ADDRESSES: The meeting will be held at the Holiday Inn Inner Harbor,
Room: Harbor 1, 12th floor, 301 West Lombard Street, Baltimore, MD
21201. Refer to Medicare Coverage Advisory Committee meeting if making
reservations through the Holiday Inn Inner Harbor.
Presentations and Comments: Submit formal presentations and written
comments to Michelle Atkinson by telephone at 410-786-2881, by e-mail
at matkinson@cms.hhs.gov, or by mail to the Executive Secretary, Office
of Clinical Standards and Quality, Centers for Medicare & Medicaid
Services, 7500 Security Boulevard, Mail Stop C1-09-06, Baltimore, MD
21244.
Web site: You may access up-to-date information on this meeting at
http://www.cms.gov/coverage.
Hotline: You may access up-to-date information on this meeting on
the CMS Advisory Committee Information Hotline, 1-877-449-5659 (toll
free), or in the Baltimore area, (410) 786-9379.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Michelle Atkinson, Executive
Secretary, by telephone at 410-786-2881, or by email at
matkinson@cms.hhs.gov
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: On December 14, 1998, we published a notice
in the Federal Register (63 FR 68780) to describe the Medicare Coverage
Advisory Committee (the Committee), which provides advice and
recommendations to us about clinical issues. This notice announces the
following public meeting of the Committee.
Meeting Topic: The Committee will discuss the evidence, hear
presentations and public comment, and make recommendations regarding
the use of ocular photodynamic therapy (OPT) with verteporfin in
routine clinical use in the population of Medicare beneficiaries who
have age-related macular degeneration (AMD) and occult with no classic
choroidal neovascularization (CNV). Background information about this
topic, including panel materials, is available on the Internet at
http://www.cms.gov/coverage.
Procedure and Agenda: This meeting is open to the public. The
Committee will hear oral presentations from the public. The Committee
may limit the number and duration of oral presentations to the time
available. If you wish to make formal presentations, you must notify
the Executive Secretary named in the FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT
section, and submit the following by August 21, 2003, 5 p.m., e.d.t.: A
brief statement of the general nature of the evidence or arguments you
wish to present, and the names and addresses of proposed participants.
A written copy of your presentation must be provided to each Panel
member before offering your public comments. We will request that you
declare at the meeting whether or not you have any financial
involvement with manufacturers of any items or services being discussed
(or with their competitors).
After the public and the CMS presentations, the Committee will
deliberate openly on the topic. Interested persons may observe the
deliberations, but the Committee will not hear further comments during
this time except at the request of the chairperson. The Committee will
also allow an unscheduled open public session for any attendee to
address issues specific to the topic. At the conclusion of the day, the
members will vote and the Committee will make its recommendation.
Authority: 5 U.S.C. App. 2, section 10(a)(1) and (a)(2).
(Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance Program No. 93.774,
Medicare--Supplementary Medical Insurance Program)
Dated: July 16, 2003.
Steve Phurrough,
Acting Director, Coverage and Analysis Group, Office of Clinical
Standards and Quality, Chief Medical Officer, Centers for Medicare &
Medicaid Services.
[FR Doc. 03-18993 Filed 7-24-03; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4120-01-P