Eligible physicians have until October 15 to resolve MIPs scoring errors for 2017

Eligible physicians have until October 15 to resolve MIPs scoring errors for 2017 October 10, 2018

Physicians participating in the Merit-based Incentive Payment System (MIPS) during the 2017 performance year have until October 15, 2018, to access and review their performance feedback. The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) has extended the deadline for a targeted review to offer additional time given the complexities of the scoring system, the impact the score will have on 2019 MIPS payment adjustments, and the concerns received by CMS from physicians.

A targeted review provides the opportunity for clinicians, groups, or those participating in certain Alternative Payment Models (APMs) to request that CMS review their MIPS payment adjustment factor(s), if they believe there is an error with the 2019 MIPS payment adjustment calculation.

Concerns received by CMS included the application of the 2017 Advancing Care Information (ACI) and Extreme and Uncontrollable Circumstances hardship exceptions, the awarding of Improvement Activity credit for successful participation in the Improvement Activities (IA) Burden Reduction Study, and the addition of the All-Cause Readmission (ACR) measure to the MIPS final score. After reviewing the concerns, CMS identified a few errors in the scoring logic and implemented solutions.

Eligible physicians should sign-in to the Quality Payment Program website now to review their performance feedback. If an error still exists with the 2019 MIPS payment adjustment calculation, the targeted review process is available until the deadline of October 15, 2018.

For those physicians who need additional assistance or answers to specific questions, the Quality Payment Program Service Center can be reached by phone at 1-866-288-8292, (TTY) 1-877-715- 6222, or by email at QPP@cms.hhs.gov.

2017 was the first performance year for the Quality Payment Program, which CMS refers to as the transition year. The 2017 MIPS final score will affect the associated 2019 MIPS payment adjustment. CMS encourages all eligible physicians to conduct their targeted review before the deadline of October 15, 2018 at 8:00pm (EDT).