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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10.15.2018 Immunizations for Adolescents Are issuers required to report Combo 1 for the Quality Ratings System in the Immunizations for Adolescents (IMA) measure?

No. HEDIS for QRS requires collection of only Combination 2 and related antigens. Change the reference in the Description from “two combination rates” to “one combination rate.” In the Data Elements Table, change “Each of the 5 rates” to “Each of the 4 rates.”

Exchange 2019

10.15.2018 Plan All-Cause Readmissions In General Guideline 15: Members With Dual Enrollment, the Medicare-Medicaid (MMP) subhead indicates that these members must be in both the Medicaid and Medicare HEDIS reports. Does this apply to Plan All-Cause Readmissions (PCR)?

No. For PCR, MMP members are removed from Medicaid reporting and are included in only Medicare reporting.

HEDIS 2019

10.15.2018 Appropriate Treatment for Children With Upper Respiratory Infection Should the “Numerator events by supplemental data” row be removed from the Data Elements Table in the Appropriate Treatment for Children With Upper Respiratory Infection (URI) measure?

Yes. Remove the “Numerator events by supplemental data” row in the Data Elements Table.

Exchange 2019

10.12.2018 CM 04 - CM 08 Is there a minimum threshold a practice must meet for these criteria?

The expectation is that these facets of the care plan should be happening routinely. NCQA has not set a specific threshold, however if the practice is reporting less than 75% the evaluator may question whether the practice has truly implemented the criteria as part of their care plan routine.

PCMH 2017

10.12.2018 Evidence Do documented processes need to be 90 days old to be submitted?

No, the redesigned PCMH process enables practices to enroll and transform into a PCMH over the course of a 12 month period. If the documented process has been implemented for a sufficient amount of time for the practice to demonstrate the needed evidence to meet criteria, the practice may submit it for review.

PCMH 2017

10.12.2018 QI 04B Can my practice use comments received in a social media format (i.e., Yelp, Facebook, etc.) as qualitative feedback for QI 04B?

Yes, collection of qualitative data through reviews on Google, Yelp, Facebook, Health Grades, etc. may be used as data for QI 04B if the practice actively notifies patients of the availability of those sites to submit patient experience information. If the sites are not actively advertised and not all patients are aware and represented, it would not meet the intent of the criteria.

PCMH 2017

10.12.2018 CM 05 If a practice offers to print a care plan for the patient but the patient declines, would this count as a 'Yes' or 'No' in the numerator.

If the practice offers to print the care plan and the patient declines, the practice may count the patient as a 'Yes'.

PCMH 2017

10.12.2018 AR-PH-1 (2018 Version) AR-KM 01 (2019 Version) Is it necessary to provide evidence in addition to affirming that we send out proactive reminders for all the necessary categories and noting the frequency?

No additional evidence is needed beyond answering the questions. Since all practices completing Annual Reporting have already shown detailed evidence previously during the transformation phase, Annual Reporting has reduced the administrative burden of maintaining recognition by reducing the amount of evidence that must be submitted.

PCMH 2017

10.12.2018 CC 06 For CC 06, is the practice required to include specialists' names on their list of commonly used specialists or is a list of just the commonly used specialty types acceptable (E.g., a list that says cardiology, ortho, endocrinology, etc.)?

The list should include the specialist office names or specialist's names in addition to their specialty types. The intent of CC 06 is for the practice to monitor its referral patterns and identify areas where it might improve care coordination (e.g., identifying clinicians most commonly referred to and ensuring that communication expectations are established for the relationship with those providers, like for CC 08). This criterion requires that the practice demonstrate how it monitors referral patterns, which could be a report showing referral trends.  

 

 

PCMH 2017

10.12.2018 KM 07 For KM 07, should the required report outline what percentage of patients have a social determinant of health noted in the chart, or should the report include what the social determinants are and what percentage of patients fall under each?

Elective criterion KM 07 goes beyond providing the percentage of patients with social determinants of health documented in the medical record; the report should include the breakdown by social determinant(s) so the practice understands which social determinants impact their patients to better implement appropriate care interventions. The intent of elective criterion is for the practice to show how it monitors social determinants of health at the population level for its patient population and also how it uses that data to address and assist in overcoming those social determinants of health. Reports may be generated from data collected in KM 02 G.

PCMH 2017

10.12.2018 BH 15 & 16 What is the difference between BH 15 & BH 16 in the Behavioral Health Distinction program?

In BH 15 (Core), the practice monitors either a mental health condition OR a substance use disorder. BH 16 is elective because it raises the bar by evaluating whether practices monitor both a mental health condition AND a substance use disorder. 

PCMH 2017

10.12.2018 AC 10 & 11 Does a single clinician practice need to provide a documented process and report for AC 10 and AC 11 as all patients would be on the same panel and always see their selected clinician by default?

No, a single clinician practice may simply attest to having a single clinician. This can be done using the text box option of Q-PASS to receive credit for these criteria.

PCMH 2017