Proposed Collection; Comment Request

AGENCY:

Office of the Assistant Secretary of Defense for Health Affairs, DoD.

ACTION:

Notice.

In compliance with Section 3506(c)(2)(A) of the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, the Office of the Assistant Secretary of Defense for Health Affairs announces the extension of an existing public information collection and seeks public comment on the provisions thereof. Comments are invited on: (a) Whether the proposed collection of information is necessary for the proper performance of the functions of the agency, including whether the information shall have practical utility; (b) the accuracy of the agency's estimate of the burden of the proposed information collection; (c) ways to enhance the quality, utility, and clarity of the information to be collected; and (d) ways to minimize the burden of the information collection on respondents, including through the use of automated collection techniques or other forms of information technology.

DATES:

Consideration will be given to all comments received by October 2, 2009.

ADDRESSES:

You may submit comments, identified by docket number and or RIN number and title, by any of the following methods:

Federal eRulemaking Portal: http://www.regulations.gov. Follow the instructions for submitting comments.

Mail: Federal Docket Management System Office, 1160 Defense Pentagon, Washington, DC 20301-1160.

Instructions: All submissions received must include the agency name and docket number or Regulatory Information Number (RIN) for this Federal Register document. The general policy for comments and other submissions from members of the public is to make these submissions available for public viewing on the Internet at http://regulations.gov as they are received without change, including any personal identifiers or contact information.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

To request information on this proposed information collection or to obtain a copy of the proposal and associated collection instruments, please write to Office of the Assistant Secretary of Defense for Health Affairs (OASD), Tricare Operations Division, ATTN: Colonel Gary Martin, 5111 Leesburg Pike, Falls Church, VA 22041-3206, or call TRICARE Operations Division, at 703-681-0947.

Title; Associated Form; and OMB Number: Department of Defense Active Duty/Reserve Forces Dental Examination; DD Form 2813; OMB Number 0720-0222.

Needs and Uses: The information collection requirement is necessary to obtain and record the dental health status of members of the Armed Forces. This form is the means for civilian dentists to record the results of their findings and provide the information to the member's military organization. The military organizations are required by Department of Defense policy to track the dental status of its members.

Affected Public: Business or other profit; Not-for-profit institutions.

Annual Burden Hours: 42,500.

Number of Respondents: 850,000.

Responses per Respondent: 1.

Average Burden per Response: 3 minutes.

Frequency: Annually.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Summary of Information Collection

Respondents are medical professionals who provide dental services to the general public. Members of the Armed Forces of the United States are the recipients of the dental examination. The Armed Forces Reserve component members must maintain their dental health at a predetermined level so problems do not occur when they are deployed to a military operation. Reserve component members usually receive their dental care from civilian dentists; therefore it would be civilian dentists who would complete the form. Following a routine dental examination, the dentist would review the categories listed on the form and circle the number corresponding to the condition that best describes the dental health of the patient. If dental problems can be identified, they are indicated on the form. Once the form is complete and the dentist signs it, the members take the form back to the organization to which they belong. The information on the form is logged into a databse. The form is kept in the health record until no longer needed and then it is destroyed.