CMS releases draft plan for new payment models

CMS “has released a draft Quality Measure Development Plan outlining how the agency will support the transition to a new Merit-based Incentive Payment System (MIPS) and for providers who choose to participate in alternative payment models (APMs).” The Medicare Access and CHIP Reauthorization Act of 2015 (MACRA), passed by Congress earlier this year, “effectively sunsets payment adjustments for three existing clinician reporting and incentive programs—Physician Quality Reporting System (PQRS), Value-based Payment Modifier (VM), and the Meaningful Use Electronic Health Record Incentive Program for eligible professionals.” The draft plan “focuses on gaps identified in the quality measure sets currently in use in PQRS, VM and Meaningful Use, offering recommendations for filling these gaps.” CMS is soliciting comments on the draft plan from providers, payers, and consumers through March 1, 2016, which can be made online here. The final plan, based on public comments to the draft plan, will be posted on the CMS website by May 1, 2016.