§ 431.424 Evaluation requirements.

(a) General. States are permitted and encouraged to use a range of appropriate evaluation strategies (including experimental and other quantitative and qualitative designs) in the application of evaluation techniques with the approval of CMS. (b) Demonstration evaluations. Demonstration evaluations will include the following: (1) Quantitative research methods. (i) These methods involve the empirical investigation of the impact of key programmatic features of the demonstration. (ii) CMS will consider alternative evaluation designs when quantitative designs are technically infeasible or not well suited to the change made by the demonstration. (2) Approaches that minimize beneficiary impact. The evaluation process must minimize burden on beneficiaries and protect their privacy in terms of implementing and operating the policy approach to be demonstrated while ensuring the impact of the demonstration is measured. (c) Evaluation design plan. (1) The State will submit and receive CMS approval of a design for an evaluation of the demonstration project and publish this document to the State's public Web site within 30 days of CMS approval. (2) The draft demonstration evaluation design must include all of the following: (i) A discussion of the demonstration hypotheses that are being tested including monitoring and reporting on the progress towards the expected outcomes. (ii) The data that will be utilized and the baseline value for each measure. (iii) The methods of data collection. (iv) A description of how the effects of the demonstration will be isolated from those other changes occurring in the State at the same time through the use of comparison or control groups to identify the impact of significant aspects of the demonstration. (v) A proposed date by which a final report on findings from evaluation activities conducted under the evaluation plan must be submitted to CMS. (vi) Any other information pertinent to the State's research on the policy operations of the demonstration operations. (d) Evaluations for demonstration extensions. (1) In the event that the State requests to extend the demonstration beyond the current approval period under the authority of section 1115(a), (e), or (f) of the Act, the State must submit an interim evaluation report as part of the State's request for a subsequent renewal of the demonstration. (2) State evaluations must be published on the State's public Web site within 30 days of submission to CMS. (e) Approved evaluation designs. The State must publish the CMS-approved demonstration evaluation design on the State's public Web site within 30 days of CMS approval. (f) Federal evaluations. The State must comply with all requirements set forth in this subpart. (g) Federal public notice. CMS will post, or provide a link to the State's public Web site, all evaluation materials, including research and data collection, on its Web site for purposes of sharing findings with the public within 30 days of receipt of materials.