Quiz Yourself on PQRS

Ask Joy: This Week- Quiz Yourself on PQRS

For this column I was originally all geared up to answer a reader question about PQRS — if group practice currently has fewer than 100 EPs  but may grow to 100+ within the next year, what are the PQRS reporting options in 2014? (For those who can’t handle this kind of suspense, you’ll find your answer on slide 47 and 48 of this CMS presentation.)

But I decided to do something different. This week, instead of answering reader questions, I thought it would be fun to ask questions of the reader. Let’s test your 2014 PQRS knowledge.

• How many different ways are there to report this year to avoid the 2016 payment adjustment?
• Clinical data registries are new to the program. What are they?
• How many individual measures are required to report to earn the PQRS incentive in 2014?
• Does the Value Based Payment Modifier affect groups of 25+? How?
• Can patient surveys be submitted in lieu of PQRS measures?
• When does the Measure Applicability Validation come into play?
• Can measures groups be reported via claims?
• Where do groups self-nominate / register for the program?
• What’s the penalty for not reporting quality data this year?

That last one was a trick question. The penalty depends on so. many. things.

To be fair, all the answers and information is available on the CMS website. But I can tell you from experience that it’ll take hours (and then more hours) of reading and piecing it all together before you start to see the big picture and parcel out the parts that affect your practice.

For as complex as meaningful use is, the details of the PQRS program make meaningful use feel like a cake walk. (Sorry, CMS. You’re just not that good at structuring your data!) Frankly, the recently published Final Rule is disorganized at best, presented as a series of convoluted conversations between CMS, public response, and their final decision on a given topic. There is no table of contents, no index, oh, and did I mention it’s 1400 pages long? There goes your weekend.

About the Author: Joy Rios has worked directly with multiple EHRs to develop training programs for both trainers and practice staff. She has successfully attested to Meaningful Use for multiple ambulatory practices in both Medicare and Medicaid. She also authored the Certified Professional Meaningful Use course for www.4Medapproved.com. Joy holds an MBA with a focus in sustainability. She is Health IT certified with a specialty in Workflow Redesign, holds HIPAA security certification, and is a great resource for information regarding government incentive programs.  Ask Joy is a regular column on 4Medapproved HIT Answers.