Medicare Current Beneficiary Survey (MCBS) (CMS-P-0015A)
Revision of a currently approved collection
No
Regular
11/21/2025
Requested
Previously Approved
36 Months From Approved
08/31/2027
35,015
35,015
32,258
35,206
0
0
The Medicare Current Beneficiary Survey (MCBS) is a continuous, multipurpose survey of a nationally representative sample of aged, disabled, and
institutionalized Medicare beneficiaries. MCBS, which is sponsored by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS), is the only
comprehensive source of information on the health status, health care use and expenditures, health insurance coverage, and socioeconomic and
demographic characteristics of the entire spectrum of Medicare beneficiaries.
The purpose of this revision is to seek approval for CMS to add new items on sleep apnea, thyroid disease, and bowel disease, remove content that is no longer relevant to the goals of the survey, and update existing content to better meet the policy needs of CMS and stakeholders. To ensure the sustainability of the survey and to maintain a reasonable level of respondent burden, it is necessary to routinely review MCBS survey content and remove items that are no longer as relevant to the policy landscape or which are no longer performing well. The requested deletions are a result of a content reduction process that CMS developed in 2024 and is currently using to review MCBS survey content in the Community and Facility instruments. The goals of this process are three-fold: 1) to promote efficiency by streamlining the questionnaire and reducing respondent burden; 2) to continuously assess utility of information collected by the MCBS and remove questions that are no longer relevant, and 3) to maintain the production of high-quality data by removing content that is no longer performing well. For this full clearance revision, CMS has used the content reduction process to identify items that a) are low performing due to difficulty of administration or data quality issues, b) are no longer needed at the same frequency of administration, c) require updated question text or response options, or d) no longer match the existing healthcare landscape or require further evaluation.
Burden has decreased due to the removal of 209 items and the revision of 46 items. As a result, the total burden has decreased from 35,206 in the currently approved clearance to 32,258. This is a net decrease of 2,948 burden hours annually.
Stephan McKenzie 410 786-1943 stephan.mckenzie@cms.hhs.gov
No
On behalf of this Federal agency, I certify that the collection of information encompassed by this request complies with 5 CFR 1320.9 and the related provisions of 5 CFR 1320.8(b)(3).
The following is a summary of the topics, regarding the proposed collection of information, that the certification covers:
(i) Why the information is being collected;
(ii) Use of information;
(iii) Burden estimate;
(iv) Nature of response (voluntary, required for a benefit, or mandatory);
(v) Nature and extent of confidentiality; and
(vi) Need to display currently valid OMB control number;
If you are unable to certify compliance with any of these provisions, identify the item by leaving the box unchecked and explain the reason in the Supporting Statement.