Proposed Changes to MIPS in 2018
The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) released another proposal regarding calendar year 2018, the second year of the Quality Payment Program (QPP). In this latest release, CMS is focusing on reducing burden to both reporting providers and those practicing at small or rural clinics.
Some of the specific proposals include plans to increase the participation thresholds, the introduction of additional meaningful Quality measures, and a reduction of the reporting and technical processes. CMS believes this will allow reporting providers to spend more time on quality patient care and less time reporting.
Great attention is being paid to the comments CMS is receiving about the proposal, accepted until Aug. 21st, 2017. CMS wants you to be involved in the decision making process. From the individual or group reporters, some of the questions CMS is looking for feedback for include:
WHAT YOU WOULD CHANGE?
WHAT WORKS CURRENTLY?
WHAT DOESN’T WORK IN YOUR EYES?
Though there have been other proposals regarding the same reporting period of calendar year 2018, this newest proposal is drastically different. It even directly contradicts the previous proposal release this year, with the Cost category going from 10% back to 0% in the recent proposal. This gives the impression that CMS has already received information that they were not expecting in recent commenting periods. CMS is scrambling to meet the needs of the provider and the program without sacrificing results on either end.