The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) has announced that they are supporting clinicians treating COVID-19 on the frontlines by "implementing additional extreme and uncontrollable circumstances policy exceptions and extensions" on reporting and data submission deadlines associated with the Merit-based Incentive Payment System (MIPS) and Medicare Shared Savings Program Accountable Care Organizations (ACOs) under the Quality Payment Program.

• The deadline for submission of 2019 MIPS performance data is extended from March 31 to April 30.
• MIPS clinicians who have not submitted data by April 30 will qualify for the automatic extreme and uncontrollable circumstances policy and will receive a neutral payment adjustment for the 2021 MIPS payment year.
• Looking forward to 2020 MIPS performance year, CMS indicates, "no data reflecting services provided January 1, 2020 – June 30, 2020 will be used in CMS' calculations for the Medicare quality reporting and value-based purchasing programs in order to reduce providers' data collection and reporting burden as they are responding to the COVID-19 pandemic."

The agency further said that for programs with deadlines in April and May 2020, data submission will be optional and based on the facility's choice to report. CMS also announced similar measures taken for multiple hospital programs.

Read more and learn which hospital programs are affected.

Keywords: ACC Advocacy, Accountable Care Organizations, Medicare, Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, U.S., Coronavirus

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