Returning EPs in the Medicare EHR Incentive Program
Eligible professionals (EPs) who demonstrated meaningful use successfully in a prior year for the Medicare EHR Incentive Program can determine their participation status in the Quality Payment Program for 2017 through a look up tool on the Quality Payment Program website. Information will then be provided on whether or not you should participate in the Merit-based Incentive Payment System (MIPS) this year and where to find resources.
If you are new to Medicare in 2017, you do not participate in MIPS. You may also be exempt if you qualify for one of the special rules for certain types of clinicians, or are participating in an Advanced Alternative Payment Model (APM). To learn more, review the MIPS Participation Fact Sheet.
If you are not in the Quality Payment Program in 2017, you can participate voluntarily and you will not be subject to payment adjustments.
Participation Notification Letters - CMS recently sent letters in the mail notifying clinicians of their MIPS participation status. A sample of the letter can be found on the Education page of https://qpp.cms.gov/. This tool is another resource for clinicians to use to determine their status.
EPs New to the Medicare EHR Incentive Program in 2017
For EPs who are participating in the Medicare EHR Incentive Program for the first time in 2017, they must take one of the following actions by October 1, 2017 to avoid the 2018 payment adjustment:
1) Attest to the Modified Stage 2 2017 EHR Incentive Program requirements; OR
2) Submit a one-time hardship exception application if they are transitioning to the MIPS path of the Quality Payment Program and plan to report on measures specified for the Advancing Care Information performance category.
- The one-time hardship exception application can be found here.
EPs in the Medicaid EHR Incentive Program in 2017
EPs that attest directly to a state for that state’s Medicaid EHR Incentive Program will continue to attest to the measures and objectives finalized in the 2015 EHR Incentive Programs Final Rule (80 FR 62762 through 62955). In 2017, Medicaid EPs have the option to report to the Modified Stage 2 or Stage 3 objectives and measures. As a reminder, EPs who are eligible only for the Medicaid EHR Incentive Program are not subject to payment adjustments.