The Medicare Access & CHIP Reauthorization Act of 2015 (MACRA) was bipartisan legislation signed into law in April 2015 to permanently repeal the Sustainable Growth Rate (SGR), streamline physician quality reporting programs, and provide incentive payments for physician participation in alternative payment models. MACRA sunsets the Physician Quality Reporting System (PQRS), the Value-Based Payment Modifier, and the Medicare Electronic Health Record (EHR) Incentive Program in 2018 and establishes an umbrella Quality Payment Program with two new pathways for payment: 1. Merit-Based Incentive Payment System (MIPS) and 2. Advanced Alternative Payment Models (Advanced APMs).

In April 2016, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) released a proposed rule to begin the process of implementing MACRA. The proposed rule establishes a framework for the Quality Payment Program including details on the two new tracks for payment: MIPS and APMs.

ISASS submitted comments to CMS on issues identified in the proposed rule as well as suggestions to improve the Program’s framework. A copy of the ISASS letter can be found here. A final rule is expected to be released by November 1, 2016. For more information on MACRA and the Quality Payment Program, visit the MACRA resource page on the ISASS website.