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Achieve Incentives and Report Compliantly with Four CMS Quality Initiatives
By Missy Lovell, BSN, RN, MBA
As physicians continue to accurately report their data, compliantly file claims, and achieve success and incentives, it is important that they become aware of the measures and requirements surrounding CMS quality initiatives for 2013 and beyond. The Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) and the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) began launching quality initiatives in 2001 to assure quality healthcare for all Americans through accountability and public disclosure. The various quality initiatives touch every aspect of the healthcare system, many of which focus on publicly reporting quality measures for hospitals and physicians, including hospital-based physicians.
The Physician Quality Reporting System
The mechanics of reporting quality data to CMS are much the same for 2013, but there are a few changes that providers need to be aware of. As in previous years, the claims-based, registry, and EHR-based methods of reporti
ng still exist, with the claims-based method still
being the most popular. Each eligible professional (EP) needs to report
on three individual measures to successfully achieve the incentive. EPs
include both physicians and applicable non-physician practitioners
(NPPs) such as nurse practitioners, physician assistants, and certified
registered nurse anesthetists. EPs represent providers who are eligible
to be paid on the Medicare Physician Fee Schedule (MPFS).
"Successful" reporting for EPs will be analyzed at the individual
provider level, and for claims-based reporting, the success threshold
remains at 50 percent. The claims-based reporting rules remain much the
same as before (e.g., a $0.00 charge should still be applied to the
quality code line items). One question that is frequently asked is
whether or not Physician Quality Reporting System (PQRS) codes need to
be submitted to Medicare HMOs; the PQRS program is applicable to Part B
fee-for-service, which comprises Railroad Medicare, traditional
fee-for-service Medicare, and Medicare secondary payors. It does not
include Part C, which encompasses Medicare Advantage/HMOs, so quality
codes should not be submitted to those payors.
PQRS
Achieving the PQRS incentive has different requirements in order to avoid the 2015 PQRS penalty. The EP has to report on one measure in 2013; whether they do so successfully or not is not part of the criteria to avoid the 2015 penalty. In 2013, it seems that CMS is giving EPs credit for attempting to successfully report PQRS, but the EP must successfully report on three measures during 2013 to obtain the 2013 incentive and be paid out in the latter part of 2014 after CMS analyzes its success factor. The incentive/penalty schedule for PQRS participation is below (please note the -1.5% penalty for 2015 will be based on 2013 reporting results):
• 2012. . . . . . 0.5% incentive
• 2013. . . . . . 0.5% incentive
• 2014. . . . . . 0.5% incentive
• 2015. . . . . . -1.5% penalty (based on 2013 reporting results, will be paid at 98.5% of MPFS)
• 2016+. . . . . -2.0% penalty (based on 2014 reporting results, will be paid at 98.0% of MPFS)
The above is applicable for an EP's
claims-based reporting of 259 potential quality individual measures. The
EHR reporting option may be more prevalent for physicians moving
forward, and registry reporting is a viable option that tends to have
more reported "success" than claims-based reporting but may include a
cost for usage of the registry.
There are also 22 measures groups, instead of individual
measures, that providers could report on. The Group Practice Reporting
Option (GPRO) became available in 2013 to smaller groups consisting of
two to 99 EPs. These groups can now report as a group, whereas in 2012,
only groups of 25 or more EPs could have reported in this fashion.
Lastly, there is also an "administrative claims option" that individuals
or groups can choose as a reporting option – one that does not require
PQRS code submission. It would require the group to register for the
option, and CMS will analyze quality data on its end. This option would
only allow avoidance of the 2015 penalty, but would not suffice to
obtain the incentive payment.
The Value Based Payment Modifier
The Value Based Payment Modifier (VBM) program, a separate program from PQRS, still hinges on PQRS reporting. According to CMS, it is a program implemented to assess both quality of care and cost of care using 2013 PQRS reporting data. The VBM will be applied to all groups of 100 or more EPs beginning in 2015 and in 2016 and will be implemented for all physicians by 2017. According to CMS, the VBM program is explained as such:
"Section 3007 of the Affordable Care Act mandated that, by 2015, CMS begin applying a value modifier under the Medicare Physician Fee Schedule (MPFS). Both cost and quality data are to be included in calculating payments for physicians.
- Physicians in groups of 100 or more eligible professionals who submit claims to Medicare under a single tax identification number will be subject to the value modifier in 2015, based on their performance in calendar year 2013.
- All physicians who participate in Fee-For-Service Medicare will be impacted by CMS's emphasis on reporting quality data through PQRS and by 2017 will be affected by the value modifier.
The biggest question that physicians ask
is, "what is the potential monetary ramification of the VBM?" In 2015,
physicians in groups of 100 or more EPs who submit claims to Medicare
under a single tax identification number will be subject to the value
modifier based on their performance in calendar year 2013. These groups
will need to self-nominate in 2013 and choose one of three PQRS group
reporting methods in order to avoid a negative -1.0% VBM adjustment to
the 2015 payment under the fee schedule: the web interface group
reporting option (web interface reporting, a limited number of composite
measures applicable); a registry (a cost is associated with this
option); or a request that CMS calculate the group's performance on
quality measures from administrative claims.
Self-nominating/registering for and participating in any of the
above-mentioned methods of reporting on clinical performance will result
in a 2015 value modifier of zero, meaning there would be no economic
impact on 2015 payments. The -1.0% VBM adjustment is potentially
applicable to the larger groups of 100 or more EPs in 2015 in addition
to the PQRS penalty. This means there is a potential -2.5% penalty at
stake for larger groups if they do not meet the PQRS and/or VBM
requirements. CMS realizes that many EPs prefer to participate in PQRS
as individuals and report individual measures via claims to CMS. In
order for the group to avoid the negative -1.0% payment adjustment under
the VBM, an authorized group representative will need to commit the
group as a whole (via a CMS-hosted registration process) to having CMS
calculate a quality score from administrative, claims-based quality
measures. In other words, the group must elect and register for the
administrative claims option under PQRS in addition to their individual
PQRS measure reporting.
From December 1, 2012 to January 31, 2013, groups could have
self-nominated to participate in the 2013 PQRS web interface group
reporting option (GPRO) or a registry. Beginning again in July 2013 and
lasting until mid-October 2013, CMS will continue the
self-nomination/registration process for groups of 100 or more EPs. They
must inform CMS which of the three potential methods of group reporting
they will use for 2013 (e.g., web interface, registry, or
administrative claims option) to avoid a negative -1.0% payment
adjustment under the VBM. For larger groups that continue to report PQRS
as individual EPs throughout 2013, they will also need to elect the
administrative claims option during the period of July through
mid-October in order to avoid the VBM penalty.
Maintenance of Certification
CMS is continuing the Maintenance of Certification (MOC) program
incentive that began in January 2011 and currently goes through 2014.
EPs who were incentive-eligible in PQRS could receive an additional 0.5%
incentive payment when MOC program incentive requirements are also met.
The EP can choose to participate in MOC only if the board in which they
are certified is on the CMS approved list. The board must nominate
themselves to CMS and pass approval as an MOC entity. If the board they
hold certification(s) through is not on the list, the EP cannot
participate in the CMS MOC program or potentially obtain the incentive.
Secondarily, the EP would have to meet the CMS requirements, one of
which is successfully reporting PQRS in the year they also would like to
obtain the MOC incentive.
Summarized per the CMS MOC program requirements, if a physician is
board certified through one of the CMS approved entities as listed and
satisfactorily participates in PQRS for the calendar year, they could
potentially achieve a 0.5% incentive in addition to the PQRS incentive.
Ultimately, CMS will pay the additional incentive if the physician
participates through their board in the CMS MOC board program, which
requires the EP to do "more than normal" to maintain their
certification. Each board that is approved has different requirements
based on their current program, so it would be advisable for the EP to
contact their board representative to find out what they must do given
their current certification status. The board reports the success or
failure of the EP to CMS on whether or not they meet the established
requirements.
Specialty-Specific Approved MOC Entities
The American Board of Radiology (ABR) and the American Board of Emergency Medicine (ABEM) were approved MOC entities for 2012 and in 2013. The American Board of Pathology (ABP) also became qualified in 2013. Although the American Board of Anesthesiology (ABA) in the past announced its intent to not participate, they are included in the CMS 2013 list of qualified entities. This is a program that ultimately requires the EP to communicate with their board to better understand the actions that need to be taken.
E-Prescribing
The CMS Electronic Prescribing Incentive Program (eRx) is
described by CMS as a reporting program that uses a combination of
incentive payments and payment adjustments to encourage electronic
prescribing by EPs. A prescriber's ability to electronically send an
accurate, error-free, and understandable prescription directly to a
pharmacy from the point-of-care is an important element in improving the
quality of patient care.
CMS has set up a few requirements to participate in the eRx
program. First, every EP must have and use a qualified eRx system and
report on his or her adoption and use of the eRx system via a quality
code on the claim. Secondly, the EP must meet the criteria for a
successful electronic prescriber specified by CMS for a particular
reporting period. Finally, at least 10 percent of a successful
electronic prescriber's Medicare Part B covered services must be
comprised of codes that appear in the denominator of the eRx measure.
The last analysis is an important distinction to determine
inclusion/exclusion in the program and the ability to achieve an
incentive or avoid penalties. The 2013 services included in the
denominator of the eRx measure are below:
Denominator Criteria (Eligible Cases) 2013:
Patient visit during the reporting period (CPT or HCPCS): 90791, 90792, 90832, 90834, 90837, 90839, 92002, 92004, 92012, 92014, 96150, 96151, 96152, 99201, 99202, 99203, 99204, 99205, 99211, 99212, 99213, 99214, 99215, 99304, 99305, 99306, 99307, 99308, 99309, 99310, 99315, 99316, 99324, 99325, 99326, 99327, 99328, 99334, 99335, 99336, 99337, 99341, 99342, 99343, 99344, 99345, 99347, 99348, 99349, 99350, G0101, G0108, G0109
E-prescribing instances are similarly
reported as PQRS measures, whereby the quality code (G8553) goes on the
claim with the denominator eligible code from the list above when and if
the provider e-prescribes.
There are also other considerations to take into account. A
majority of hospital-based providers do not bill for many if any of the
codes in the eRx measure as above. CMS has documented what an EP's
"exclusion criteria" is for applying the 2014 adjustment.
Many hospital-based practices have a minimal, if any, percentage
of charges that are attributable to the codes in the eRx measure, which
is what has "automatically excluded" them from the adjustment. If an
analysis of the EP's six month service offerings concludes that their
allowed charges attributable to the encounter codes in the measure hover
close to or exceed 10 percent, then the EP should be e-prescribing,
reviewing other exclusion criteria, or manually claiming an applicable
exemption.
The last year that a provider can achieve an incentive of 0.5
percent of allowed charges if the requirements are met is 2013. The
adjustment schedule is below, and the penalties have been in place since
the start of 2012:
- -1.0 percent adjustment in 2012 (EP
will receive 99 percent of their Medicare Part B PFS amount that would
otherwise apply to such services);
- -1.5 percent adjustment in 2013 (EP
will receive 98.5 percent of their Medicare Part B PFS amount for
covered professional services); and
- -2.0 percent adjustment in 2014 (EP will receive 98 percent of their Medicare Part B PFS amount for covered professional services).
If an EP does not meet the exclusion
criteria, then the EP will need to e-prescribe. The adjustment avoidance
requirements mandate that the EP will need to report 10 cases of
e-prescribing (e.g., the appropriate quality code (G8553) paired with an
encounter code from the e-prescribing measure or other service) on
applicable patients over the first half of 2013 to avoid the 2014
adjustment. Additionally, if the EP wants to achieve the incentive, they
must report e-prescribing on 25 patients over the course of the year
2013. Achieving the e-prescribing incentive and avoiding the adjustment
have different criteria to meet.
If an EP wanted to avoid the 2014 adjustment, he or she had to
e-prescribe 10 times during the first half of 2013; if the EP met the
criteria to obtain the eRx 2012 incentive for e-prescribing, they have
already avoided the 2014 adjustment. To avoid the adjustment, CMS does
allow the reporting of the e-prescribing quality code on any Part B
billable service if e-prescribing was performed, and not just when a
code from the measure denominator is billed. The EP must be aware that
the e-prescribing in that case will not be counted towards the minimum
needed for incentive purposes.
The following new 2014 eRx payment adjustment exemptions will be
determined by CMS through review of the EHR Incentive Program
Attestation and Registration system and will be automatically processed
by CMS:
- Those EPs and every member within a
group practice participating in eRx GPRO who achieve Meaningful Use
under the Medicare or Medicaid EHR Incentive Program during the 12-month
eRx reporting period (1/1/2012–12/31/2012) or the six-month eRx
reporting period (1/1/2013–6/30/2013)
- Those EPs and every member within a group practice participating in eRx GPRO who demonstrate intent to participate in the Medicare or Medicaid EHR Incentive Program by registering, providing EHR certification ID, and adopting certified EHR technology by January 31, 2013.
In conclusion, there are many CMS sponsored quality initiatives and programs in place, and the programs discussed are relevant to hospital-based physicians and physician practices as they strive to report their data and meet quality reporting and performance standards. n
Missy Lovell, BSN, RN, MBA is the compliance manager with Medical Management Professionals, Inc. (MMP).
References
www.cms.gov/PQRSwww.cms.gov/Medicare/Medicare-Fee-for-ServicePayment/PhysicianFeedbackProgram/ValueBasedPaymentModifier.html
www.theaba.org
www.abem.org
www.abpath.org
www.theabr.org
www.cms.gov/Medicare/Quality-Initiatives-Patient-Assessment-Instruments/ERxIncentive/index.html
http://www.cms.gov/Outreach-and-Education/Medicare-Learning-Network-MLN/MLNMattersArticles/Downloads/ SE1206.pdf
https://www.qualitynet.org/portal/server.pt/community/communications_support_system/234