(a) General requirements. The State will submit quarterly FFS claims and managed care payments, as identified in § 431.970(a), to allow federal contractors to conduct data processing, medical record, and eligibility reviews to meet the requirements of the PERM measurement.

(b) Claims universe. (1) The PERM claims universe includes payments that were originally paid (paid claims) and for which payment was requested but denied (denied claims) during the PERM review period, and for which there is FFP (or would have been if the claim had not been denied) through Title XIX (Medicaid) or Title XXI (CHIP).

(2) The State must establish controls to ensure FFS and managed care universes are accurate and complete, including comparing the FFS and managed care universes to the Form CMS-64 and Form CMS-21 as appropriate.

(c) Sample size. CMS estimates each State's annual sample size for the PERM review at the beginning of the PERM cycle.

(1) Precision and confidence levels. The national annual sample size will be estimated to achieve at least a minimum National-level improper payment rate with a 90 percent confidence interval of plus or minus 2.5 percent of the total amount of all payments for Medicaid and CHIP.

(2) State-specific sample sizes. CMS will develop State-specific sample sizes for each State. CMS may take into consideration the following factors in determining each State's annual state-specific sample size for the current PERM cycle:

(i) State-level precision goals for the current PERM cycle;

(ii) The improper payment rate and precision of that improper payment rate from the State's previous PERM cycle;

(iii) The State's overall Medicaid and CHIP expenditures; and

(iv) Other relevant factors as determined by CMS.