FAQ Directory

Here are some of the most frequently asked questions about NCQA’s various programs. If you don’t see what you are looking for in one of the entries below, you can ask a question through My NCQA.

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1.15.2020 Adherence to Antipsychotic Medications for Individuals With Schizophrenia Are the first two bullets below in Step 2: Exclusions of the Event/Diagnosis “required” exclusions?
• A diagnosis of dementia (Dementia Value Set).
• Did not have at least two antipsychotic medication dispensing events. There are two ways to identify dispensing events: by claim/encounter data and by pharmacy data. The organization must use both methods to identify dispensing events, but an event need only be identified by one method to be counted.
– Claim/encounter data. An antipsychotic medication (Long Acting Injections 14 Days Supply Value Set; Long Acting Injections 28 Days Supply Value Set; Long Acting Injections 30 Days Supply Value Set).
– Pharmacy data. Dispensed an antipsychotic medication on an ambulatory basis. Use all the medication lists in the Oral Antipsychotic Medications and Long-Acting Injections tables below to identify antipsychotic medication dispensing events.

Yes. The first two bullets in Step 2 of the Event/Diagnosis are required exclusions and supplemental data may be used when reporting them. These exclusions are reported in the “Number of required exclusions” data element in IDSS. The remainder of the bullets in Step 2 are exclusions, but they are not required exclusions and supplemental data may not be used when reporting them.

HEDIS 2020

1.15.2020 Denial Notifications to members via web portals If an organization uses a member web portal as a means of member written/electronic denial notification (which includes all requirements of UM 4 through UM 7), does this meet the UM denial notification requirements?

No, notification of denials to a member through a web portal does not meet the requirement for member notifications. However, emailing a denial notification directly to a member would be acceptable for electronic notification.

MBHO 2020

1.15.2020 “Training and Experience” for Same or Similar Specialists Please clarify what is meant by “training and experience” for same or similar specialist in UM 8 and UM 9.

The purpose of same-or-similar specialist review of appeals is to apply specific clinical knowledge and experience when determining if an appeal meets criteria for medical necessity and clinical appropriateness. “Training and experience” refers to the practitioner’s clinical training and experience.
The intent is that the specialist reviewing the appeal would have encountered a patient with this condition who is considering or has received the service or procedure in a clinical setting. NCQA assesses whether the specialist is appropriate for the condition, service or procedure in question, and does not consider the referring practitioner type.

Effective January 1, 2020, NCQA accepts board certification in the same specialty as a proxy for clinical training and experience.
NCQA does not require that the same-or similar specialist reviewer be actively practicing.

Experience with the condition, service or procedure that is limited to UM decision making in cases similar to the appeal in question is not considered sufficient experience, nor do UM decision-making criteria supersede the requirement for same-or-similar specialist review.

MBHO 2020

12.16.2019 Childhood Immunization Status The third bullet in the Rotavirus numerator description references Rotavirus (2 Dose Schedule) Procedure Value Set, which does not exist in the Value Set Directory. Which value set should be used for reporting?

Replace the value set reference with “Rotavirus Vaccine (2 Dose Schedule) Procedure Value Set” and use this value set for reporting.

HEDIS 2020

12.16.2019 Follow-Up Care for Children Prescribed ADHD Medication The third bullet in the Rate 2-C&M Phase numerator description references the Observation Visit Value Set, which does not exist in the Value Set Directory. Which value set should be used for reporting?

Replace the value set reference with “Observation Value Set” and use this value set for reporting.

HEDIS 2020

12.15.2019 Excluding organization employees and their dependents from complex case management (CCM) file review Should organizations exclude employees and their dependents from the CCM file review universe?

Yes. Employees and their dependents are excluded from the CCM file review universe.

MBHO 2019

12.15.2019 PHM 1 Element B - Delegation vs Vendor Arrangements PHM 1, Element B is listed in Appendix 2 as an element where a vendor relationship may exist. The “Related information” section also includes information about the use of vendors in this element; however, it is unclear what functions NCQA considers delegation and what it considers a vendor relationship. Please clarify.

For PHM 1, Element B, NCQA evaluates communicating information to members who become eligible for programs that involve interactive contact.

Therefore, for any program that involves interactive contact (e.g., CCM, wellness coaching, web-based tools, disease management, smoking cessation classes), if the organization under review (e.g., a plan) contracts with another organization (e.g., a PHM company) to perform the function and the PHM company is responsible for communicating the information required to meet PHM 1, Element B, the plan has delegated the functions associated with PHM 1, Element B. This is considered delegation and all delegation requirements, including oversight, apply.

If the PHM company provides a technology supported service, such as a web-based tool, this is a vendor relationship for any requirements that directly evaluate the PHM function (e.g., PHM 4).

HP 2020

12.03.2019 AC 03 How does NCQA define “regular business hours”? Our practice is open from 8 am–5 pm. Would opening from 7 am–4 pm meet the requirements of this criterion?

By “regular business hours,” NCQA means 8 am-5 pm, Monday-Friday. The practice determines its hours of operation. Offering appointments between 7am and 4pm meets the criterion. The intent is that practices provide appointments outside typical business hours, to accommodate patients’ access needs. A practice could also shift staff hours—some staff work from 7 am-4 pm weekdays; some staff work from 8 am-5 pm weekdays—to enhance access.

PCMH 2017

12.02.2019 Prenatal and Postpartum Care The PPC measure defines an enrollment segment as a period of continuous enrollment with no gaps. The “last enrollment segment” is used in calculating the timelines of prenatal care numerator and is defined as the enrollment segment during the pregnancy with a start date closest to the delivery date. How do organizations identify the last enrollment segment for a member who has multiple enrollment segments?

For HEDIS 2020 reporting, enrollment segments are determined based on enrollment data provided by the health plan. If a plan provides the member's enrollment in different products/product lines as different enrollment segments, or even enrollment in the same product/product lines as different enrollment segments, the start date of the last enrollment segment must be used.

HEDIS 2020

12.02.2019 General Guideline 33: Measures That Require Results From the Most Recent Test or Measurement With General Guideline 33, organizations must use the most recent date when multiple dates of service for the same lab test are provided within a 7-day period. Which test is used in the following example, the September test or the December test?
A HbA1c lab claim on 12/30/2019 had a result date in the medical record on 1/3/2020. The member also had an HbA1c test with both the test and a result on 9/30/19.

Using General Guideline 33, the 12/30/2019 test is used as the most recent test while the 1/3/2020 result is within 7 days of the test, it is after the date threshold in the measure and may not be used. The result is counted as missing and the member is compliant for the HbA1c Testing and HbA1c Poor Control indicators. The member is not compliant for the HbA1c Control <7 for Selected Populations and HbA1c Control <8 indicators.
The 9/30/2019 test cannot be used as it is not the most recent.

Note: Ensuring results in the year after the measurement year are not counted is not tested in HEDIS 2020 Measure Certification.

HEDIS 2020

12.02.2019 Potentially Harmful Drug-Disease Interactions in Older Adults In the DDE measure, the IESD definition states, “For an acute inpatient encounter identified only by a professional claim (where the discharge date cannot be determined), the IESD is the date of service.” However, the definition does not specify which date to use as the IESD for nonacute inpatient encounters. Which date should be used?

Use the date of service to identify the IESD for nonacute inpatient encounters.

HEDIS 2020

12.02.2019 General Guideline 37: Measures That Use Medication Lists General Guideline 37 states that if an organization uses both pharmacy data (NDC codes) and clinical data (RxNorm codes) for reporting, to avoid double counting, deduplicate and count an NDC code and an RxNorm code for the same drug on the same date of service as only one dispensing event. If a measure specification says, “if multiple prescriptions for the same medication are dispensed on the same day, sum the days supply,” should the days supply from the pharmacy data event and the clinical data event be summed?

The intent of GG 37 is to prevent double-counting when an organization uses both pharmacy data (NDC codes) and clinical data (RxNorm codes) for reporting, because the same dispensing event can have both an NDC code in the pharmacy data and an RxNorm code in the clinical data. Because the two codes identify the same dispensing event (not two dispensing events), count an NDC code and an RxNorm code on the same date of service as one dispensing event and do not sum the days supply.

HEDIS 2020