Additional QP APM Incentive Payment Details Now Available on QPP.CMS.GOV

The Quality Payment Program website (qpp.cms.gov) has been updated to include 2019 Alternative Payment Model (APM) Incentive Payment details. Clinicians and surrogates can log in to the QPP website using their HARP credentials to see their APM Incentive Payment details.

In November, CMS announced that the second round of payments are being disbursed to eligible clinicians who were Qualifying APM Participants (QPs) based on their 2017 performance for their 2019 5% APM Incentive Payments. For additional information on the APM Incentive Payment, please review the 2019 APM Incentive Payment Fact Sheet to explain:

Who is eligible to receive an APM incentive payment in 2019
How CMS determines your 2019 APM Incentive Payment
Answers to frequently asked questions

APM Incentive Payment Details Available on QPP Website

CMS has taken time to ensure correct payments and information are available during the 2019 payment year. CMS’ process includes verifying eligible clinicians’ Advanced APM participation and the calculation of the APM Incentive Payment.

You can now log in to the QPP website and see the amount and the organization paid.

For More Information

Visit the QPP website for more information on APMs and lists of current APM participants
Contact the Quality Payment Program at 1-866-288-8292 (TTY 1-877-715-6222), Monday through Friday, 8:00 AM-8:00 PM ET or by e-mail at QPP@cms.hhs.gov.

Reminder: Applications for the 2019 Promoting Interoperability Hardship and Extreme and Uncontrollable Circumstances Exceptions are Due December 31

If you are interested in applying for a Promoting Interoperability Hardship Exception or Extreme and Uncontrollable Circumstances Exception for the 2019 Performance Year of MIPS, you must submit your application to CMS by Tuesday, December 31, 2019.

Who is Eligible for a Promoting Interoperability Hardship Exception?

MIPS eligible clinicians, groups, and virtual groups may qualify for a re-weighting of the Promoting Interoperability performance category to 0% if they:

Are a small practice;
Have decertified EHR technology;
Have insufficient Internet connectivity;
Face extreme and uncontrollable circumstances such as disaster, practice closure, severe financial distress, or vendor issues; or
Lack control over the availability of CEHRT

Note: If you’re already exempt from reporting Promoting Interoperability data, you don’t need to apply.

Who is Eligible for an Extreme and Uncontrollable Circumstances Exception?

MIPS eligible clinicians, groups, and virtual groups may qualify for a re-weighting of any or all MIPS performance categories to 0% if they are affected by extreme and uncontrollable circumstances extending beyond the Promoting Interoperability performance category. These circumstances must render them unable to:

Collect information necessary to submit for a performance category; or
Submit information that would be used to score a performance category for an extended period of time.

Note: Individual MIPS eligible clinicians (not groups or virtual groups) will receive the exception automatically if they are located in a CMS-designated region that has been affected by an extreme and uncontrollable event during the 2019 MIPS Performance Year. These clinicians will not need to apply for the exception.

How do I Know if I’m Approved?

If you submit an application for either of the exceptions, you will be notified by email if your request was approved or denied. If approved, this will also be added to your eligibility profile on the QPP Participation Status Tool, but may not appear in the tool until the submission window is open in 2020.

For More Information

Visit the Promoting Interoperability Hardship Exception and Extreme and Uncontrollable Circumstances Exception QPP webpages for more information and links to each application.
Download the 2019 Exceptions FAQs to learn more about these exceptions.
Check out the 2019 MIPS Automatic Extreme and Uncontrollable Circumstances Policy Fact Sheet to learn more about who automatically receives the exception.

Contact the Quality Payment Program at QPP@cms.hhs.gov or 1-866-288-8292 (TTY: 1-877-715-6222). To receive assistance more quickly, consider calling during non-peak hours—before 10 AM and after 2 PM ET.

Who is Eligible for a Promoting Interoperability Hardship Exception?

MIPS eligible clinicians, groups, and virtual groups may qualify for a re-weighting of the Promoting Interoperability performance category to 0% if they:

Are a small practice;
Have decertified EHR technology;
Have insufficient Internet connectivity;
Face extreme and uncontrollable circumstances such as disaster, practice closure, severe financial distress, or vendor issues; or
Lack control over the availability of CEHRT

Note: If you’re already exempt from reporting Promoting Interoperability data, you don’t need to apply.

Who is Eligible for an Extreme and Uncontrollable Circumstances Exception?

Collect information necessary to submit for a performance category; or
Submit information that would be used to score a performance category for an extended period of time.

How do I Know if I’m Approved?

For More Information

Visit the Promoting Interoperability Hardship Exception and Extreme and Uncontrollable Circumstances Exception QPP webpages for more information and links to each application.
Download the 2019 Exceptions FAQs to learn more about these exceptions.
Check out the 2019 MIPS Automatic Extreme and Uncontrollable Circumstances Policy Fact Sheet to learn more about who automatically receives the exception.

Contact the Quality Payment Program at QPP@cms.hhs.gov or 1-866-288-8292 (TTY: 1-877-715-6222). To receive assistance more quickly, consider calling during non-peak hours—before 10 AM and after 2 PM ET.

TEP Nominations Open for Physician Cost Measures and Patient Relationship Codes Project

CMS has contracted with Acumen, LLC to develop episode based-cost measures to meet the requirements of the Medicare Access and CHIP Reauthorization Act of 2015 (MACRA). As part of the measure development process, CMS asks contractors to convene groups of stakeholders and experts who contribute direction and thoughtful input to the measure developer during cost measure development and maintenance.

Acumen, LLC is seeking nominations to a Technical Expert Panel (TEP) that will provide guidance for activities under the “Physician Cost Measures and Patient Relationship Codes (PCMP)” contract. This contract continues the measure development activities performed under the previous “MACRA Episode Groups and Resource Use Measures” contract, and adds the maintenance of the MSPB Hospital measure. This TEP nomination is separate from the nomination to Clinical Subcommittees, which Acumen convenes to gather detailed clinical input on measures in specific clinical areas.

The first meeting is a two-day, in-person meeting in Washington, D.C. on February 6-7, 2020. Subsequent meetings may be held in-person or via webinar.

Nominations can be submitted through this web-based nomination form and the nomination period will close on December 20, 2019 at 11:59PM ET. For more information, please visit the CMS Technical Expert Panel webpage.