If you are not already participating in the 2012 Physician Quality Reporting System (PQRS) program, this year will be the last reporting year that is affiliated with incentive payments. Beginning in 2015, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) will implement a negative payment adjustment to those eligible health care professionals who do not report on quality measures. How eligible professionals report in 2013 will determine the adjustment set for 2015. To learn more about PQRS, click here.

This year, participating health care professionals can receive a 0.5 percent incentive payment for Medicare services furnished during this reporting period. Also, a six month reporting period has been added to the 12 month reporting period for PQRS. This period began on July 1 and will end December 31. To be eligible for the incentive during the 6 month period, eligible professionals must report on one measure group for at least 80 percent of applicable Medicare patients (approximately eight or more patients). The requirements for the 12 month reporting period have remained the same.

Those reporting via registry or through EHR should coordinate with their vendors to bring their 2012 PQRS measure data to CMS in early 2013.