Virtual Primary Care and Urgent Care Accreditation

Build a strong foundation for the future of virtual health care

Rising health care costs and the COVID-19 pandemic have compelled many providers, health plans and systems to reimagine how care is delivered. Virtual-first care delivery options have entered the market, and more traditional venues of care—including hospital and office settings—recognize the value of adding virtual care to their offerings. Virtual care can meet the needs of patients and providers, enhance existing processes and fill equity gaps.

But many health care entities face significant hurdles to building virtual care delivery systems, and lack a roadmap for quality care delivery through virtual modalities. In the new care landscape, traditional organizations that built hybrid capabilities and virtual-first organizations need guidance for improving their processes and enhancing their population’s health care experience.

New Accreditation Designed with the Future in Mind

NCQA’s Virtual Primary Care and Urgent Care Accreditation provides organizations with a roadmap towards quality care, enabling better outcomes for patients receiving care through virtual modalities. The program uniquely positions organizations to identify gaps in existing virtual programs, provide quality care for patients, report and track outcomes. This accreditation highlights organizations meeting the virtual care requirements and may facilitate alignment with value-based contracting agreements.

Understanding the needs of both hybrid and virtual-first entities, NCQA developed two evaluation modules, designed specifically for organizations that utilize virtual primary care and virtual urgent care, recognizing the nuances of care delivered virtually within the domain. Organizations may pursue the Primary Care module or the Urgent Care module—or may pursue both modules simultaneously, depending on their business operations.