The first performance year of the Merit-based Incentive 
Payment System (MIPS) is well underway. One of the most marked differences between MIPS and previous CMS initiatives is the quality of educational resources available to eligible clinicians. However, wading through all the different documents can be confusing if you are just starting out. This article will walk you through the available resources for each step of your MIPS educational journey.
Determining MIPS Eligibility
Determining MIPS EligibilityCMS is sending out MIPS Participation Status Letters from late April through the end of May 2017. They have also released a lookup tool so you can determine prior to receiving your letter if you will be eligible for the MIPS payment adjustment. If you are not eligible for the MIPS payment adjustment this year but will be in the future, you can still report MIPS. You will not receive an incentive or a penalty, but you will have access to a feedback report so you can determine changes that may need to be made to maximize your incentive int he future.
Resources for determining eligibility:
- NEW! MIPS Participation Status Letter Explanation & Lookup Tool
- NEW! MIPS Participation Fact Sheet
- Lookup for first year of MIPS eligibility
- MIPS Eligible Clinician Definitions and Exemptions
Understanding MIPS Performance Categories
Understanding MIPS Performance CategoriesQuality Performance Category
The MIPS Quality Performance Category is closely related to its predecessor, the Physician Quality Reporting System (PQRS). Much Like PQRS, the Quality Performance Category can be reported individually or as a group, and requires submission of quality measure information to CMS. It is the most valuable performance category in 2017, worth 60% of the MIPS composite score.
Resources for the Quality Performance Category:
Advancing Care Information Performance Category
The Advancing Care Information Performance Category is Meaningful Use updated to be more flexible, customizable, flexible and focused on patient engagement and interoperability.
Resources for the Advancing Care Information Performance Category:
- Roadmap to Reporting MIPS Advancing Care Information
- Scoring the Advancing Care Information Performance Category
- Advancing Care Information Fact Sheet
Improvement Activities Performance Category
The Improvement Activities Performance Category is a new concept introduced by MIPS reporting and rewards eligible clinicians for participating in activities related to their patient population. Clinicians and groups can choose to participate in activities most relevant to both their practice and patient population. The Improvement Activities Performance Category is worth 15% of the MIPS Composite Performance Score in 2017.
Resources for the Improvement Activities Performance Category:
Choosing Level of Participation
Choosing Level of ParticipationTo ease the burden of transitioning to MACRA/MIPS, CMS has introduced 3 pacing options for at least the performance year 2017. Each pacing option has different reporting specifications; however, all three options offer the safety of knowing the MIPS negative payment adjustment can be avoided.
Resources for the Quality Performance Category:
