National Survey of Older Americans Act Participants TOC Memo

DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH & HUMAN SERVICES

Administration for Community Living
Washington, D.C. 20201

To:

Julie Wise, OMB

Through:

Tomakie Washington, ACL

From:

Susan Jenkins, ACL

Re:

Approval for 3-Year PRA Clearance Package for the National Survey of Older
Americans Act Participants (NSOAAP)

Date:

17 March 2021

In summary, ACL is submitting a 3-year renewal PRA clearance package with a) the addition of a
rotating module to the collection instrument and b) non-substantive changes to the collection
instrument (OMB Control Number: 0985-0023).
On August 20, 2019, OPE received Paperwork Reduction Act approval for the “National Survey of
Older Americans Act Participants” (OMB Control Number: 0985-0023) – and this approval was to 1)
inform OMB that the NSOAAP was not transitioning to a longitudinal survey, 2) state that NSOAAP
would no longer need a one-year extension, 3) alert OMB to non-substantive changes to the
information collection instrument, 4) inform OMB that NSOAAP is keeping the approved revisions
to the information collection instrument, and 5) alert OMB to a forthcoming request to add a rotating
module to the NSOAAP. The Terms of Clearance state:
Terms of the previous clearance remain in effect. Title updated (to remove "longitudinal ") and the
change request is approved with the understanding that: a) NSOAAP is not transitioning to a
longitudinal study, b) NSOAAP no longer needs a one-year extension at the end of the current 3-year
approval period as is stated in the Terms of Clearance, c) non-substantive changes have been made
to the information collection instrument, d) NSOAAP is keeping the revisions to the study questions
that were approved on 4/11/18, and e) ACL still anticipates submitting a request to OMB to add a
rotating module to the study. With this, only the “2019 14th NSOAAP Survey Instrument” is needed
for the collection.
The purposes of this memo are to alert OMB to the submission of a 3-year renewal PRA clearance of
the same information collection that was approved in 2019 with a request to add a) a rotating module
to the collection instrument, b) non-substantive changes to the collection instrument, and c) correct
references to the years covered by PRA packages in Table 11 (see below).
Anticipated Timelines Related to the Terms of Clearance
Table 1 outlines ACL’s timing and actions related to the Terms of Clearance for the NSOAAP.

Table 1 in the memo dated July 11, 2019, incorrectly included the statements “Currently
Approved Information Collection Instrument to be collected 2019-2021” and “Next 3-year
Information Collection Instrument to be collected 2022-2024.” The correct statements should be
“Currently Approved Information Collection Instrument to be collected 2018-2020” and “Next
3-year Information Collection Instrument to be collected 2021-2023.”
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Table 1.
PRA
Package
Currently
Approved
Information
Collection
Instrument to
be collected
2018-2020
Next 3-year
Information
Collection
Instrument to
be collected
2021-2023

Action

Date

ACL submitted non-substantive modifications to OMB
OMB approved with change (OMB Control Number: 09850023, expires 4/30/21)
ACL collected information with collection instrument

7/11/19
8/20/19

ACL did not collect information with the collection instrument
in 2020 due to the increased burden it may have put on the
respondents during COVID-19
ACL submitting PRA package for next 3-year clearance
package, addition of rotating module, and non-substantive
changes to the collection instrument
Anticipated OMB approval of next 3-year clearance package
ACL collects information with collection instrument and
rotating module

Summer/Fall
2019
Summer/Fall
2020
Anticipated
4/5/21
5/31/21
Summer/Fall
2021

Summary of Substantive Change to the NSOAAP
Rotating Module
As previously indicated in correspondence dated, July 11, 2019, a rotating module is being added to
the NSOAAP starting in 2021 (the survey was not fielded in 2020 due to the increased burden it may
have put on respondents during COVID-19). The first rotating module topic is ‘The Effect of
COVID-19 on Access to and Use of Older Americans Act Programs and Services.’ This module
supplants the module on ‘Emergency Preparedness’ that was included in the 60-day FRN due to the
ongoing health crisis older adults are experiencing as a result of COVID-19. The Emergency
Preparedness module will be added to the 2022 collection instrument.
In developing the questions for the COVID-19 module, ACL collaborated with internal and external
experts to select 10 to 13 questions (depending on the service received) directly from existing
information collection instruments or slightly modified instruments to include on the module. These
10 to 13 questions are expected to result in a slight increase in burden for the respondents,
approximately 5 minutes added to an approximately 35 minute survey. ACL welcomes public
comments on the questions. As the survey maintains the same purpose, and retains the same sample,
ACL requests the module only be required to undergo a 30-day public comment period. If this is
acceptable to OMB, ACL proposes this streamlined process be used each year a rotating module is
added to the survey.
Summary of Non-Substantive Changes to the NSOAAP
Non-Substantive Changes to the Collection Instrument
Due to COVID-19, several existing questions in the collection instrument need to be revised to
reflect how older adults’ access to and use of Older Americans Act programs and services has
changed during the pandemic.

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ORIGINAL QUESTION

REVISED QUESTION

In the past year have you received homedelivered meals?
How long have you been attending the lunch
program?

In the past year have you received meals
from the meals program?
How long have you been participating in the
meals program?

How many days each week do you eat at the
senior center or meal site for lunch?

How many days each week do you receive a
meal from the meals program?

When was the last time you ate lunch at the at
the senior center or meal site?

When was the last time you received a meal
from the meals program?

How would you rate the lunch program
overall?
Within the last 12 months, have you noticed
any changes in the amount or quality of the
food in your lunch program (CM)/ homedelivered meals (HDM)?

How would you rate the meal program
overall?
In the past 12 months since COVID,
thinking about the meals or food you have
received from {AAA}, how has the meals
program changed for you?

Do the home-delivered meals arrive when
expected?

In the past 12 months since COVID, how
have you been receiving meals or food from
{AAA}?
Does eating at the lunch program improve your Does eating meals from the meal program
health?
improve your health?
On the days you eat a congregate meal, what
portion of all the foods that you eat in a day
does this meal represent?

On the days you received a meal, what
portion of all the foods that you eat in a day
does this meal represent?

How often is the meal delivered on time?

In the past 12 months since COVID, how
have you been receiving meals or food from
{AAA}?
Do home-delivered food or meals from the
meals program help you continue to live in
your own home?

Do home-delivered meals help you continue to
live in your own home?
Do home-delivered meals help you eat
healthier foods?
Do you use the transportation service to get to
a meals lunch program?
Do the services you receive help you to
continue to live at home?
Does the meal program help you to continue to
live at home?
Does the meal program help you to continue to
live independently?
Does your family or friends provide assistance
that helps you stay at home?

Does the meals program help you eat
healthier foods?
Do you use the transportation service to pick
up food or to get a meal?
Do the services you receive help you to
continue to live independently?
Does the meal program help you to continue
to live independently?
Do the home-delivered meals help you to
continue to live independently?
Does your family or friends provide
assistance that helps you to continue to live
independently?

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