By Brandy Dehaven, SCG Health
Twitter: @SCGhealth
Previously, any eligible clinician without certified electronic medical technology (CEMRT) could receive reweighting of the Advancing Care Information (ACI) performance category, but as of October 1, 2017, clinicians will have to prove that their reasons for not having CEMRT are good enough to receive a hardship exception. This exception allows eligible clinicians that meet the hardship specifications to participate in the Quality Payment Program (QPP) and not receive a negative 4% payment adjustment. The deadline to apply for a hardship exception is March 31, 2018.
Who Qualifies?
Just because an eligible clinician does not have CEMRT, does not mean they qualify for the reweighting. There are specific reasons that will need to be cited by the eligible clinician to receive the reweighting.
The reasons specified are:
- insufficient internet connectivity
- extreme and uncontrollable circumstances
- lack of control over the availability of CEMRT
Eligible clinicians may also qualify for reweighting if classified as a special status Merit-based Incentive Payment System (MIPS)-eligible clinician. Special status clinicians in 2017 include hospital-based MIPS-eligible clinicians, physician assistants, nurse practitioners, clinical nurse specialists, certified RN anesthetists, and non-patient facing clinicians.
What steps do eligible clinicians need to take?
Applications for reweighting can be completed and submitted online. In addition, the QPP service center is offering eligible clinicians an opportunity to submit an application verbally. Special status clinicians do not need to submit an application and will automatically be reweighted. Applications will need to be reviewed and will result in approval or dismissal.
Information needed for the application includes: contact information, Taxpayer identification number or National Provider Identifier (NPI), and hardship exception category. Be prepared to provide supplemental information on the hardship exception category selected.
Apply for the QPP Hardship Exception online.
Or apply verbally by calling the QPP Service Center: 866-288-8292
Deadline
MIPS-eligible clinicians need to submit a QPP Hardship Exception Application by March 31, 2018. If you qualified for the QPP Hardship Exception, there is still time to apply and report MIPS measures to avoid a negative a negative payment adjustment for 2017.
This article was originally published on the SCGHealth Blog and is republished here with permission.