Impact Assessment of CMS Quality Measures

Research Project Summary

Impact Assessment of the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services Quality and Efficiency Measures

Every three years, CMS conducts and publishes an assessment of the quality and efficiency impact of the use of endorsed measures in CMS programs, as requited by statute. This report comprehensively evaluates the impact of CMS quality measurement and reporting programs and informs policy to promote quality improvement in health care nationwide. Key components of the work include an analysis of hospital processes and patient outcomes, patient-reported experiences, overall trends and disparities, unintended consequences of measurement, costs averted, and alignment and adoption of measures.

The 2018 National Impact Assessment of the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) Quality Measures Report addressed a set of research questions developed in consultation with a multidisciplinary technical expert panel and the Federal Assessment Steering Committee. HSAG and its research partner, the RAND Corporations, surveyed hospital and nursing home quality leaders to explore how providers are responding to CMS quality measurement and their perspectives on the challenges that inhibit performance improvement. HSAG is continuing to collect and analyze data across a wide array of CMS quality programs for the next assessment in 2021.

QHRC Role

QHRC performed two sets of tasks related to the 2021 Impact Assessment Report. In the first, we conducted in-depth interviews with 40 Medicare beneficiaries and their family members to elicit their input on quality measures.  In the second, we interviewed quality leaders at 39 Home Health Agencies to understand their views on the clinical utility of Home Health-specific quality measures and their perspectives on administrative burden associated with the measures.

Client Team