Beginning July 1, eligible physicians voluntarily participating in a Medicare pay-for-performance initiative can earn a bonus payment of up to 1.5% of total allowed charges.
In an April 3 announcement, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) detailed specifications for the 74 measures included in the 2007 Physician Quality Reporting Initiative. The initiative creates financial incentives for physicians and other health professionals who successfully report data for a set of quality measures.
These evidence- and consensus-based measures relate to important processes of care linked to improved health care quality outcomes. The measures reflect the work of national organizations involved in the development of quality measures, including the American Medical Association's Physician Consortium for Performance Improvement.
The measure specifications and other program information are available at http://www.cms.gov/pqri.
