On November 2nd, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) issued a final rule that will implement changes to the Quality Payment Program (QPP). As required by the Medicare Access and CHIP Reauthorization Act (MACRA), base payment rates for services under the Physician Fee Schedule will remain at 2019 levels through 2025, but beginning in 2019, the amounts paid to eligible providers will be adjusted according to the provider’s participation in one of two QPP tracks:
- The Merit-based Incentive Payment System (MIPS); or
- Advanced Alternative Payment Models (APMs).
2017 and 2018 are intended to serve as transition years to encourage the participation, planning, and education of eligible clinicians in MIPS or Advanced APMs. The first payment year is scheduled to begin in 2019, based on 2017 performance. The final rule will continue to implement the QPP in 2018, but will generally ease requirements and extend transition timelines for providers, especially those in small and rural practices.
The rule will go into effect on January 1, 2018. A summary of major provisions of the rule is attached. The full rule is available here.