MACRA/MIPS: The Final Scores Cometh

Jim TateBy Jim Tate, EMR Advocate
MACRA/MIPS Subject Matter Expert
Twitter: @jimtate, eMail: jimtate@emradvocate.com

Seems like we’ve been waiting for this a long, long time. All these MACRA/MIPS mileposts and deadlines have come and gone. The rear-view mirror shows where we’ve been, but what lies ahead?

Here is what CMS tell us:

  • The data submission period for the 2017 Merit-based Incentive Payment System (MIPS) closed on April 3, 2018. CMS is currently in the process of reviewing all the data submitted.
  • Your final score and feedback will be available on July 1, 2018 through the Quality Payment Program website. You will be able to access preliminary and final feedback with the same Enterprise Identity Management (EIDM) credentials that allowed you to submit and view your data during the submission period.

Eligible clinicians can now log in here and see their final MIPS scores for the 2017 reporting period. This will be an opportunity to view the scores before they will be publicly released later this year. Those scores will be available on the Physician Compare website viewable on provider profile pages as well as a master file that can downloaded. That master file, with data on hundreds of thousands of MIPS affected clinicians, will be the data that groups like HealthGrades, RateMDs, and Vitals will use to provide consumer/patient information. The reputational impact of a MIPS score cannot be underestimated. Shortly after the scores are public I expect numerous websites will pop up allowing anyone the opportunity to enter their zip code and type of provider (oncologist, dermatologist, etc.) and up will pop a Google map with address, names, and MIPS scores. This is coming in a matter of months. The final MIPS scores are in the can, the ink has dried, and the road ahead only contains the public release.

This article was originally published on EMR Advocate and is republished here with permission.