For years, healthcare providers have navigated the complexities of the Merit-based Incentive Payment System (MIPS). They often find it to be a burdensome, one-size-fits-all compliance requirement that feels more like an administrative chore than a true measure of quality.  

But the landscape of quality reporting is undergoing its most significant evolution yet. The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) is shifting away from the broad traditional MIPS framework toward a focused, specialty-specific model: MIPS Value Pathways (MVPs). 

While participation in MVPs is still optional, CMS’ message is clear: MVPs are the future of MIPS. Traditional MIPS will eventually be phased out. This isn't just another annual tweak to MIPS; it's a rethinking of how performance is measured and rewarded.  

Practices that want to stay prepared, optimize their performance, and maximize each provider’s score need to build an MVP strategy — now. 

What are MVPs? 

Think of traditional MIPS as a large, 20-page à la carte menu where you need to select from hundreds of disconnected options across different categories. This often leads to a "check-the-box" approach, resulting in a reporting story that feels disjointed and may not accurately reflect the specialized value you deliver to your patients. 

MVPs, on the other hand, are closer to specialty-specific prix fixe menus, crafted by clinical leaders. Each MVP is a curated, preselected bundle of measures and activities directly relevant to a specific specialty, condition, or patient population (e.g., oncology, kidney care, cardiology). This works to create a more cohesive narrative of care, from quality and cost to patient-focused improvement activities. 

What's really different about MVPs? 

The bundled approach of MVPs introduces significant advantages over the traditional framework, particularly in how performance is measured. 

You choose 4 quality measures to report instead of 6.  

The measure choices are limited in each MVP to align to a provider focus. If you’re having a hard time finding 6 relevant quality measures with good benchmarks, this can be a significant benefit. 

You’re only scored on relevant cost measures. 

The Cost category creates a major pain point for specialists in traditional MIPS. Performance is often calculated using a broad set of episode-based measures, many of which may have little to do with the care you provide. An orthopedic surgeon, for instance, could see their performance score impacted by costs related to diabetes management due to wide attribution rules.  

MVPs solve this problem. In an MVP, you’re scored on only the cost measures included in your specific pathway. This ensures that your performance is judged on the costs you can influence, leading to a fairer, more accurate, and ultimately more actionable assessment of your practice’s cost-effectiveness. 

Example: 

Focus on population health 

Another key change is the introduction of population health measures. These are foundational, claims-based measures included in every MVP. They’re designed to track high-level outcomes across your entire patient population. These currently include: 

• Hospital-Wide, 30-Day, All-Cause Unplanned Readmission Rate 

• Admission and Emergency Department Visits for Patients with Multiple Chronic Conditions 

By making one of these a part of every MVP, CMS is sending a clear signal: every provider, including specialists, shares accountability for the overall health of the patient population. This creates a consistent baseline of accountability while still allowing the rest of the MVP measures (Quality and IA) to be specialized, linking your specific clinical expertise to broader healthcare goals. 

The strategic advantage: Why you can't afford to wait 

With the transition to MVPs on the horizon, proactive organizations have a strategic opportunity. For the next few years, you can participate in traditional MIPS and 1 or more MVPs simultaneously. This "test-and-learn" period is invaluable, allowing you to compare your performance across different pathways and identify the strategy that yields the best possible score and financial outcome before it becomes a mandate. 

For larger organizations, this creates an even greater opportunity. The flexibility of the MVP framework allows you to report for your entire group under a single MVP that best represents your practice. You can also create 1 or more subgroups to allow different teams to report on the MVP most relevant to them. This allows you to excel in a certain area of care.  

Instead of a single, blended score that might mask the exceptional performance of your oncology department, you can report them as a subgroup under the Oncology MVP to showcase their specific value. A large multi-specialty group can have its primary care providers report traditional MIPS while its oncologists and nephrologists report under their respective MVPs — all under the same Tax ID Number (TIN), as shown below.

This level of strategic, comparative reporting is impossible with a traditional, siloed approach to data. 

How to power your MVP strategy with Healthmonix Prism™

This new era of multi-pathway reporting requires a new approach to data management. The old model of manually preparing, validating, and loading the same data for different programs is no longer viable; it's inefficient, costly, and prone to error. 

This is precisely why we built Healthmonix Prism™. 

• Our Prism platform is built on a “load data once, use many times” philosophy. It acts as a unified data engine for your entire organization. You provide a single data stream, and Prism seamlessly refracts it into every reporting pathway you need. Prism transforms your complex data into clear, actionable insights. 

With Prism, you can: 

• Upload your data once: Our Prism™ core engine ingests and validates all your EHR, claims, and billing data into a single, reliable source of truth, eliminating the need for redundant data preparation. 

• Pursue multiple pathways simultaneously: Seamlessly report across our traditional MIPS, MVP, and ACO/APM modules without duplicating data or effort. And be prepared for ASM and TEAM as quality reporting comes into view for those programs.

• Compare and optimize: For the first time, you can get a clear, side-by-side comparison of your potential scores across different MIPS pathways. Prism allows you to make a data-driven decision about your submission strategy and maximize your incentives. 

With our industry-leading MVP Selection Wizard, you can: 

• View the full picture of your true performance across MVPs. Instead of guessing which measures or MVPs will give you the best results, the Wizard translates your actual data into clear, evidence-based insights.

• Design reporting strategies built on fact, not assumptions — maximizing your scores, minimizing risk, and positioning your organization for long-term success. 

The shift to MVPs is not a question of if, but when. Practices that prepare now by embracing a modern data strategy will be the ones who thrive in the future of value-based care. 

Don't wait for traditional MIPS to be sunset. See your data in a new light.  

Contact us today to learn how Healthmonix Prism™ can power your MVP strategy.

If you want to learn more about MVPs, watch our webinar 2026 PFS Proposed Rule: Understanding the impact on MIPS or reach out to us.