Now Available: Updated Electronic Clinical Quality Measures (eCQMs) for 2017

Now Available: Updated Electronic Clinical Quality Measures (eCQMs) for 2017

Today, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) posted the annual update for electronic clinical quality measures (eCQMs) for eligible hospitals and eligible professionals. Providers will use these updated measures to electronically report 2017 quality data for CMS quality reporting programs.

CMS updates the specifications annually to improve their alignment with current clinical guidelines and code systems so that they remain relevant and actionable within the clinical care setting.

Where to Find the Updated Measures

The updated measure specifications are available on the CMS website eCQM Library and the Electronic Clinical Quality Improvement (eCQI) Resource Center.

• 29 updated measures for eligible hospitals for the 2017 reporting period

      Reporting period for eligible hospitals is defined as the measure data capture period of the calendar year between January 1 and December 31.

• 64 updated measures for eligible professionals for the 2017 performance period

      Performance period for eligible professionals is defined as the measure data capture period of the calendar year between January 1 and December 31.

All of the updated measure specifications have been re-specified using QDM 4.2 based-HQMF version R 2.1.

How to Download the Measures

To download the measures from CMS.gov, pull down the entire set of EH or EP measures in their respective zip files using the links.

To obtain the value sets for the eCQMs, you can download packages in multiple file formats from the “Downloads” page at the Value Set Authority Center (VSAC). The value sets are available as a complete set, as well as value sets per measure. You will be required to login with Unified Medical Language System® Metathesaurus License credentials, also available through the VSAC website. The Data Element Catalog, an additional resource linked on the VSAC home page, contains the complete list of updated eCQMs and value set names.

Additional eCQM Resources can be found on the eCQI Resource Center.