ASCQR Program Data Submission Deadline May 15

March 2019 ~

CMS implemented the Ambulatory Surgical Center Quality Reporting (ASCQR) Program, in October 2012, to aid ASCs in reporting quality of care data for standardized measures and ensure the full annual update to their ASC annual payment rate will be received.

In order to comply with the ASCQR Program and avoid penalties for the calendar year (CY) 2020, physicians and eligible Medicare-certified facilities must submit data on the following measures when reporting data in 2019.

Measures for CY 2019 Payment Determination

• ASC-1 – Patient Burn NOT REQUIRED IN 2019
• ASC-2 – Patient Fall NOT REQUIRED IN 2019
• ASC-3 – Wrong Site, Wrong Side, Wrong Patient, Wrong Procedure, Wrong Implant NOT REQUIRED IN 2019
• ASC-4 – All-Cause Hospital Transfer/Admission NOT REQUIRED IN 2019
• ASC-8 – Influenza Vaccination Coverage among Healthcare Personnel REMOVED
• ASC-9 – Endoscopy/Polyp Surveillance: Appropriate Follow-Up Interval for Normal Colonoscopy in Average-Risk Patients
  • ASC-9 and ASC-10 are web-based measures that are also reported via QualityNet. This aggregate data must be reported by all Medicare-certified ASCs, regardless of specialty or case mix.
• ASC-10 – Endoscopy/Polyp Surveillance: Colonoscopy Interval for Patients with a History of Adenomatous Polyps – Avoidance of Inappropriate Use
  • NOTE: ASC-10 was removed from the ASC Quality Reporting Program for 2021 payment determinations and beyond, but facilities must enter data collected in 2019 in order to avoid the penalty in 2020.
• ASC-11 – Cataracts: Improvement in Patient’s Visual Function within 90 Days Following Cataract Surgery VOLUNTARY
  • NOTE: ASCs may voluntarily submit data for CY 2017 but will not be subject to a payment reduction with respect to this measure during the voluntary reporting period.
• ASC-12 – Facility 7-Day Risk-Standardized Hospital Visit Rate after Outpatient Colonoscopy
  • NOTE: facilities do not need to report data for ASC-12, as the data will be pulled from claims previously submitted by the hospital that the patient visits within seven days of the colonoscopy.
• ASC-13 – Normothermia
  • Data collection for this measure began in 2018 and the first year of required reporting is 2019.
• ASC-14 – Unplanned Anterior Vitrectomy
  • Data collection for this measure began in 2018 and the first year of required reporting is 2019.

For more information on all measures, refer to ASCA’s 2019 Quality Reporting Requirements and the Ambulatory Surgical Center Quality Reporting Specifications Manual.

Source(s): ASCA Government Affairs Update March 21, 2019-Volume IX, Issue 11; ASC Quality Reporting Website; CMS; Ambulatory Surgery Center Association;