CMS finalized the 2021 MIPS rules on Dec. 1, buried within the 2,165-page long 2021 PFS Final Rule, less than the usual 60 days prior to its effectivity Jan. 1, 2021. As usual, CMS released a 2021 QPP Final Rule Fact Sheet which summarizes basic information about the changes, and of course there will be numerous industry pundits who will offer recaps of that Fact Sheet, but some of the most interesting insights required reading between the lines and cross comparing with previous CMS information. The purpose of this HiQ blog article is to provide a quick practical summary and

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HiQ is pleased to announce a new Platinum tier of service for its market-leading MIPS Essentials^TMservice. MIPS Essentials^TM helps ambulatory practices maximize revenue with expert MIPS optimization, and all tier of MIPS Essentials^TM include MIPS reporting assistance as well as MIPS audit assistance.

With the Platinum tier of service, the HiQ Senior MIPS Specialist assigned to the practice leads the annual project for the practice’s MIPS performance and reporting, and drives transformative change in the practice using the HiQ Quality System. The MIPS Specialist schedules weekly “touchpoint” meetings and performs daily follow-up, so as to minimize resource burden on the practice.

CMS Proposed Rule for 2021 MIPS: One Big Nothing Burger We shouldn’t be surprised that CMS decided to punt by postponing its long-heralded introduction of “MIPS Value Pathways” (MVPs): “We intended to begin transitioning to MVPs in the 2021 MIPS performance year; however, due to the 2019 Novel Coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic public health emergency and resultant need for clinician focus on the response, our timeline has changed accordingly such that the proposal for initial MVPs will be delayed until at least the 2022 performance year.” https://www.federalregister.gov/documents/2020/08/17/2020-17127/medicare-program-cy-2021-revisions-to-payment-policies-under-the-physician-fee-schedule-and-other   MVPs was lauded as a restructuring of MIPS to “simplify” the program, but

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 What do we know about MVPs so far?  We should soon see the CMS Proposed Rule for the 2021 MIPS performance year but will then need to wait again until November for the corresponding Final Rule. The main topic of interest for MIPS will be “MVPs” (MIPS Value Pathways), which CMS has promised to begin phasing in over a period of years starting with the 2021 MIPS performance year. CMS tells us MVPs are intended to restructure and “simplify” the MIPS program.  In the 2019 calendar year rule-making cycle (targeting the 2020 MIPS performance year), CMS had already given us

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The “MIPS with Mike” webinar series Mike Schmidt, founder and President of HiQ Services, LLC, has been a well-known speaker on how to succeed with MIPS, MACRA, ONC Certified software and the prior Meaningful Use and PQRS programs. The “MIPS with Mike” webinar series will continue to deep-dive on specific topics and the first HiQ webinar will be “Interoperability and the Practice.” Why practices should think about Interoperability now, during the pandemic The MIPS program and its payment adjustments is not going away, despite the pandemic and the rush to telehealth workflows. In fact, Interoperability in the MIPS sense is

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The Reality of the Pandemic We at HiQ extend our best wishes and hopes for all the many healthcare practices affected by the pandemic. We understand how many practices have no option but to shut down and lay off their staff temporarily. We realize how difficult this is emotionally and financially. We understand that the duration is uncertain and may be longer than expected. We believe that while specialty care may not be critically urgent to patients during the initial pandemic quarantine period, care for many chronic and new conditions will certainly be necessary and become increasingly urgent later in

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ONC (the Office of the National Coordinator for Healthcare IT) issued its long-anticipated new Final Rule for the ONC HIT Certification Program on March 9, 2020 titled “21st Century Cures Act: Interoperability, Information Blocking, and the ONC Health IT Certification Program”. The ONC HIT Certification Program regulates how software products such as EHR, eRx, Direct messaging, patient portal etc. are certified for use in CMS programs such as MIPS. This article is intended to assist practices interpret what this change in certification rules means to them. The article attempts to strike a balance between readability and accuracy on an inherently

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The practice has responsibilities under the MIPS program that 2015 Edition “CEHRT” has been implemented for the duration of the minimum-90-day MIPS Promoting Interoperability performance period. As will become clear below, there is some confusion regarding the defined term “CEHRT”. The practice should be clear on what it is attesting to and have the necessary documentation in place so that it can survive a possible MIPS pre-payment or post-payment audit; the practice should “trust but verify” that the HIT vendor is delivering on its obligations. After explaining the painful regulatory terminology, we provide a simple step-by-step procedure for how to

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 Feb. 3, 2020 – Charlotte, NC – HiQ Services, LLC and SJA Solutions, LLC are pleased to announce a partnership between the two companies in which SJA Solutions will provide Technical Network Assessment services for HiQ MIPS Essentials clients.  SJA Solutions provides a people-focused and proactive approach to technology management and security, to lift the veil of the IT world for clients and help reduce cost and risk associated with technology issues. SJA Solutions has extensive experience providing Technical Network Assessments to complement Security Risk Analysis as required for HIPAA and MIPS compliance.  HiQ was founded in 2019 to help

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 Jan. 24, 2020 – Charlotte, NC – HiQ Services, LLC and Eagle Associates, Inc. are pleased to announce a partnership in which Eagle Associates will provide its HIPAA Compliance and Security Risk Analysis solutions to complement HiQ’s MIPS Essentials services.  Eagle Associates has been providing compliance assistance to practices throughout the country for over 30 years, providing inclusive compliance services that require minimal time and effort for a practice to implement. Ongoing customer support is what has set Eagle Associates apart from its competitors.  HiQ was founded in 2019 to help small and large practices succeed with MIPS, MACRA &

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