CMS postpones data collection for three IPF quality reporting measures

The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services today postponed to Jan. 1 the deadline for inpatient psychiatric facilities to begin collecting data on three quality measures adopted in the fiscal year 2016 IPF prospective payment system rule. The original deadline was July 1. The measures, which will apply to the FY 2019 payment determination, are: transition record with specified elements received by discharged patients; timely transmission of transition record measures; and screening for metabolic disorders. “[S]ince the adoption of the measures, we have received a number of requests for further information, as well as questions concerning their interpretation,” CMS said. “These issues were only addressed in full in the most recent updates to the IPFQR Program Manual and the Outreach and Education webinar, which reviewed those changes. Accordingly, we have further delayed the initial collection of these measures to allow providers sufficient time to incorporate this updated information into their collection operations.” AHA and other associations urged CMS to postpone the data collection after hearing from members that the measure specifications were still in flux, which greatly inhibited their ability to accurately collect data. For more information, contact the CMS program’s support team at https://cms-ip.custhelp.com or 844-472-4477 or 866-800-8765.