Physician practices participating in a Medicare accountable care organization (ACO) may have an easier time submitting quality data to Medicare if a bill passed Monday by the House becomes law.
H.R. 5347, the Health Care Efficiency Through Flexibility Act, would allow Medicare ACOs to continue to collect quality data through three types of measures -- electronic clinical quality measures (eCQMs), Merit-Based Incentive Payment System clinical quality measures, and Medicare clinical quality measures -- through performance year 2029. Previously, ACOs were supposed to begin using only eCQMs starting last year, according to a regulation issued by CMS in 2024.
The bill applies specifically to the Medicare Shared Savings Program, one of the more popular forms of Medicare ACOs. ACOs are groups of doctors, hospitals, and other healthcare professionals that work together to give patients high-quality, coordinated service and healthcare, improve health outcomes, and manage costs, according to CMS.
The measure, which was passed by a voice vote, also requires CMS to establish a pilot program to test other digital reporting methods for ACOs. The pilot program, which would run from 2028 to 2032, would exempt ACOs that participate in it from using other reporting methods; once it ends, CMS would be required to publicly post an analysis of the program and any related recommendations.
