CMS Extends Deadline for IQR and MU to Submit eCQM Data

The deadline for eligible hospitals in the Hospital Inpatient Quality Reporting (IQR) and Meaningful Use (MU) programs has been extended by Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) to submit their electronic clinical quality measure (eCQM) data from the year of 2016.

The extension for the eCQM data’s submission is indeed for the year of 2016 reporting period, pertaining to the fiscal year 2018 payment determination. In accordance to the announcement of CMS, the deadline has been extended from Tuesday, February 28, 2017, to Monday, March 13, 2017, at 11:59 p.m. PT.
CMS stated that it also intends to start the rulemaking procedure regarding modifications to the eCQM requirements developed in the FY 2017 IPPS (Inpatient Prospective Payment System) final rule in response to uncertainties raised by stakeholders. The agency said, “In case to help decrease reporting burdens while supporting the long term aims of these programs, we intend to involve proposals regarding the 2017 eCQM reporting requirements for the Hospital IQR and EHR (electronic health record) Incentive Programs for eligible hospitals and critical access hospitals in the FY 2018 IPPS proposed rule that we hope to be released in the late spring of 2017.”
Particularly, in the FY 2018 IPPS proposed rule, CMS plans to deal the uncertainties of stakeholder regarding issues associated with hospitals transitioning to latest EHR systems or products, upgrading to EHR technology certified to the 2015 Edition, modifying workflows, and addressing data element mapping, as well as the time assigned for hospitals to incorporate updates to eCQM specifications in the year of 2017.  CMS is also anticipating to propose in future rulemaking to change and modify the number of eCQMs needed to be reported for 2017 as well as to shorten the reporting period of eCQM.