Care Compare quarterly refresh available for hospice

Care Compare quarterly refresh available for hospice

The May 2022 quarterly refresh for the Hospice Quality Reporting Program is now available on Care Compare, but you won’t find two new quality measures for hospice there yet.

The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) is expected to make available the data for those claims-based measures in August, according to Kim Skehan, Director of Compliance and Regulatory for SimiTree.

The two hospice measures set to be publicly reported for the first time are Hospice Visits in the Last Days of Life (HVLDL) and the Hospice Care Index (HCI).

“State averages will also be displayed for each measure,” Skehan said.

The August 2022 refresh of Care Compare will also include public reporting of CAHPS Hospice Survey Star Ratings, Skehan said. Star Ratings will then be updated every other quarter.

Hospices will have the opportunity to see their CAHPS Hospice Survey Star Ratings in their official CMS Preview Report during the provider preview period prior to each update of Care Compare. Hospices first saw their Star Ratings in their Preview Reports during the preview periods for February 2022 and May 2022.

Hospice providers need to ensure that their Quality Assessment/Performance Improvement (QAPI) programs are updated to include these new requirements, as well as training staff on these measures and implementing strategies for identified performance improvement opportunities.

SimiTree can help

Need help complying with hospice or home health regulations? SimiTree consultants can work with your agency to assess and facilitate compliance, implement processes to improve outcomes and more.

Start the conversation about your quality improvement needs by reaching out to us. Fill out the form below to learn more.