MACRA

AMA House Punts on Texas Plan to Fix QPP - 06/26/2019

A decision on whether the American Medical Association (AMA) will join the Texas Medical Association’s call for major changes to Medicare’s Quality Payment Program (QPP) will have to wait a few more months, the AMA House of Delegates decided at its annual meeting in Chicago last week. The QPP overhaul was just one of 11 resolutions the Texas delegation to the AMA took to the five-day meeting. Most of the other 10 received a very warm welcome.

TMA to Congress: Undo Payment Freeze, Help Physicians With MACRA - 06/25/2019

Physicians participating in the Quality Payment Program’s Merit-Based Incentive Payment System and alternative payment models need help from Congress to succeed, and lawmakers need to undo an upcoming freeze on Medicare payments. That’s what the American Medical Association, the Texas Medical Association, and dozens of other medical societies told House of Representatives and Senate leaders in both parties in a letter sent last week.

Be On the Lookout for MIPS Audit Request - 06/25/2019

The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services has contracted with Guidehouse, a nationwide consulting firm, to audit physicians who participate in the Merit-Based Incentive Program, which is under the Quality Payment Program. If you submitted MIPS data for 2017 and/or 2018, you could receive a request for information via email or certified letter from Guidehouse.

Deadline to Submit 2018 MIPS Data is April 2 - 03/27/2019

If you plan to participate in the Merit-Based Incentive Payment System, submitting your data for 2018 on time is not something to fool around with. That’s why the Texas Medical Association reminds you that the deadline to submit data for the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services’2018 Quality Payment Program is April 2 – the day after April Fool’s Day.

National Specialty Societies With MACRA Information - 03/27/2019

To help you get the best information possible, TMA has identified direct links to MACRA news, resource centers, education, and advocacy from national specialty societies. Visit your specialty society online for information specific to your specialty, setting, and practice.

How to Avoid MIPS Penalty with Minimal Reporting by April 2 - 03/25/2019

For 2018 reporting, your 2020 Medicare payments will be cut even more – by 5 percent – if you are required to participate in MIPS but choose not to submit data. So if you’d rather get paid in full next year (or – even better – receive a payment bonus), there’s still time to submit 2018 data. But you should act fast. The deadline is April 2.

Free MIPS Help from TMF Health Quality Institute - 03/22/2019

The Texas Medical Association has heard from physicians who do not know if they are required to participate in Medicare’s Merit-Based Incentive Payment System (MIPS) as well as those who know they need to participate – and know they need help.

CMS Working to Correct MIPS Payment Errors - 03/05/2019

The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services says it has become aware of an error in MIPS payment adjustments applied to Medicare Part B drugs, and is working to resolve the issue.

New Options for Medicare’s 2019 Quality Payment Program - 01/08/2019

Just when you thought no one could make the Quality Payment Program any more complicated, the agency that runs the program has done just that. Beginning in 2019, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services will split the QPP’s advanced alternative payment model (APM) track into two options: the original Medicare Option, and the new All-Payer Combination Option.

MIPS Training and Assistance - 12/12/2018

TMA's practice management consultants can conduct a MACRA readiness assessment of your practice and provide customized on-site assistance to help you with your practice's specific needs. The assessment will focus on clinical processes, electronic health record optimization, and workflow improvement opportunities to help increase your MIPS scoring.

MIPS Audit? Here’s What You Need to Know - 11/19/2018

Are you planning to submit data to the Merit-Based Incentive Payment System under the 2018 Quality Payment Program? If so, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services could tap you for a MIPS audit in the future. Here are some things to know to prepare your practice.

Give QPP Feedback, Get MIPS Credit - 11/12/2018

Have you explored the Quality Payment Program (QPP) website lately? Did you have trouble finding what you were looking for? Did you click on all the links but leave the website with more questions than answers? If the answer is yes, tell the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) all about it and get credit for the Merit-Based Incentive Payment System (MIPS) improvement activities category.

Medicare Gets It Wrong, Re-Calculates MIPS Scores and Changes 2019 Payment Adjustments - 09/18/2018

All Texas physicians should recheck their 2017 Merit-Based Incentive Payment System (MIPS) or Alternative Payment Model (APM) information to ensure the correct MIPS payment adjustment (bonus or penalty) was applied for 2019 Medicare payments.

CMS Proposes Big Medicare Changes for 2019 - 07/19/2018

The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services last week proposed what the agency called “historic changes” in the Medicare program. TMA is already digging deep into the proposal to make sure the changes are good for Texas physicians and your patients.

How Will Quality Scores Affect Your 2019 Medicare Payments? Get an EIDM Account ASAP - 07/10/2018

The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services on July 1 will release final MIPS scores, performance feedback, and Medicare payment adjustment determinations (bonuses and penalties). But you’ll need an EIDM account to access your report card.

MACRA Corner: TMA Wants To Hear From You On The QPP - 05/04/2018

The TMA MACRA Resource Center receives hundreds of visits every month from physicians looking for the latest QPP information. To bring you the best education and resources, TMA wants to hear from you on the QPP.

Congress Asks, TMA Delivers: 50 More Ways to Fix Medicare - 04/23/2018

TMA leaders presented lawmakers with 50 ways to increase physicians’ Medicare pay; reduce paperwork and hassles; measure “quality” with metrics that are meaningful to physicians and their patients; and push health information technology vendors to shoulder their fair share of the administrative burden.

QPP Made Simple(r) - 04/20/2018

The Physicians Advocacy Institute is helping doctors understand the MACRA Quality Payment Program (QPP) by launching an online resource center with the help of the Texas Medical Association, other state medical societies, and health care consulting firm Healthsperien.

Tell the Feds About MIPS Burdens, Prevent a 2020 Penalty - 04/20/2018

Do you find collecting and reporting Medicare quality data to be challenging, time-consuming, costly, or meaningless? If so, here’s your chance to tell the feds about that burden.

Tips on How to Report Data on Quality Measures for MACRA - 04/19/2018

Tips from TMA to help you determine which reporting mechanism will best fit your practice for the first Merit-Based Incentive Payment System (MIPS) performance period in 2017.

Final MACRA Rule Includes Real Improvements - 04/19/2018

Maybe the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) isn’t a cold, faceless bureaucracy after all. In the wake of this summer’s withering criticism of the agency’s draft rule to implement Medicare’s new quality payment programs, CMS Acting Administrator Andy Slavitt pledged that he and his staff would listen to physicians’ real concerns about the Medicare Access and CHIP Reauthorization Act (MACRA). CMS published the final rule on Oct. 14, and, at first blush, the 2,398-page document appears to include some significant improvements for physicians and patients. TMA suggested many of those improvements in the 50 recommendations we submitted to CMS in our formal comment letter on the draft rule.

TPHC Praises Bill to Make State College Campuses and Offices Tobacco-Free - 04/19/2018

Statement by Eduardo Sanchez, MD, chair of the Texas Public Health Coalition and former Texas commissioner of health, in support of legislation filed to make Texas state college campuses and state agencies tobacco-free.

Get a Medicare Bonus With New Bundled Payment Model - 04/19/2018

The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) Center for Medicare and Medicaid Innovation (Innovation Center) has launched a voluntary bundled payment model that would give participants a Medicare bonus if expenditures remain under a spending target that factors in quality.

Another Possible Audit, This Time for MIPS - 04/19/2018

You could receive a request in the future from the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services for an audit of your Merit-Based Incentive Payment System submissions.

Victory! Congress Finally Repeals Flawed Medicare SGR Formula - 04/17/2018

Statement of TMA President Austin I. King, MD, on the U.S. Senate vote to approve HR 2, the Medicare Access and CHIP Reauthorization Act, which finally repealed the Medicare Sustainable Growth Rate (SGR) formula.