Surgeons will be relieved to know that, according to CMS Acting
Administrator Andy Slavitt, physicians will be allowed to pick their
pace for transitioning to MIPS. The ACS and other stakeholders
have advocated for incremental implementation and are pleased
that CMS has agreed to take steps to ensure a smooth transition.
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EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR’S REPORT
If you have comments or suggestions about this or other issues, please
send them to Dr. Hoyt at lookingforward@facs.org.
Quality and Resource Use Reports (QRURs) from
CMS. This information is useful in benchmarking
one’s performance on quality and cost measures
against those of other Medicare providers and in
determining how practice patterns might affect
one’s score. At press time, our understanding was
that CMS intends to use much of the same cost data
it currently collects under the VBM to calculate the
MIPS Resource Use component score.
To comply with CPIA, the College recommends
that surgeons review the list of suggested CPIA activities at the end of the proposed rule ( s3.amazonaws.com/
public-inspection.federalregister.gov/2016-10032.pdf ) and
identify six activities aimed at advancing clinical practice that they are likely to perform. An example would
be engaging in a patient safety and practice assessment activity, such as using the ACS National Surgical
Quality Improvement Program (ACS NSQIP®) Risk
Calculator.
Moving forward
Surgeons will be relieved to know that, according to
CMS Acting Administrator Andy Slavitt, physicians
will be allowed to pick their pace for transitioning
to MIPS. The ACS and other stakeholders have advocated for incremental implementation and are pleased
that CMS has agreed to take steps to ensure a smooth
transition.
Physicians will have four reporting options in
2017: test the QPP, participate for part of the calendar
year, participate for the full year, or participate in an
Advanced APM. Physicians who choose to test the QPP
may submit some data to the QPP after January 1 and
will avoid a negative payment adjustment under the
QPP. Surgeons who participate for a portion of 2017
may submit QPP information for a reduced number
of days and qualify for a nominal positive payment
adjustment. Health care professionals who opt to par-
ticipate for the entirety of 2017 would need to submit
all relevant information regarding quality measures,
how their practice uses technology, and the activities
their practices are conducting to improve patient care.
These participants may qualify for a modest positive
payment adjustment.
Finally, physicians may participate in an Advanced
APM. This option, however, is the least viable for
surgeons at present because only two bundles are appli-
cable to surgery—cardiac care and joint replacement.
Nonetheless, the College anticipates that physicians
eventually will face greater pressures to move into
Advanced APMs. Therefore, we are engaged in ongo-
ing efforts with Brandeis University, Waltham, MA,
and Brigham and Women’s Hospital, Boston, to
develop surgery-specific APMs.
For more information about the QPP and what you
can do to prepare for success under this new payment
system, check out the series of four educational videos
the ACS has created on the QPP—Navigating the Qual-
ity Payment Program; What Is MIPS?; What Can You Do
Now to Prepare for MIPS?; and CMS Allows You to Pick
Your Pace. These videos were unveiled at Clinical Con-
gress 2016 and are now available on the ACS website at
facs.org/QPP, along with other resources.
I truly believe that surgeons will do well under
MIPS as it moves payment incentives away from
volume and toward a focus on value. The ACS has
led the charge toward patient-centered, evidence-based
care for more than 100 years. Our members are as
ready as anyone to meet this latest challenge. ♦
