2017 is long gone. It’s 2018 and with the New Year comes many changes. First, you have to battle with remembering what year it is whenever you jot down the date on a paper. Second, you have to keep your New Year’s resolution in mind as you go through your everyday routine. Additionally, depending on what field you work in, you’ll need to read and understand the updated HEDIS Quality Measures for 2018.
Every year the National Committee for Quality Assurance (NCQA) releases these changes to the HEDIS Quality Measures. Thankfully, when you partner with an experienced company like HEDIS Nurses, we keep track of these annual updates and ensure they’re incorporated into our work.
There are both changes and additions to the measures every year. Here is a list of the changes that have been made to the 2017 HEDIS Quality Measures.
- Immunizations for Adolescents
- Breast Cancer Screening
- Initiation & Engagement of Alcohol & Other Drug Abuse or Dependence Treatment
- Identification of Alcohol and Other Drug Services
- Plan All-Cause Readmissions
First, the NCQA revised the vaccine rate for the human papillomavirus (HPV) to align with what the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices recommended in their guidelines. These changes not permit a two dose vaccine instead of a three dose vaccine for adolescents.
In the 2018 HEDIS Quality Measures, the National Committee for Quality Assurance added digital breast tomosynthesis (DBT) to the current list of tests that are acceptable for breast cancer screening.
This measure was updated specifically to include medication-assisted treatment (MAT) as an acceptable treatment for those battling opioid or alcohol dependence. The new measure also incorporates telehealth to the list of appropriate treatment options. In addition, these types of dependencies were added as rate stratification for reporting.
The National Committee for Quality Assurance updated this measure to include MAT as an acceptable treatment for patients with opioid and alcohol dependence and specified that these are to be reported as subgroups. These changes give providers and plans better insight when it comes to treatment services. It also ensures that the latest guidelines for treatment and care are being taken into consideration.
This update involves a strategy to extend the existing Plan All-Cause Readmission (PCR) measure to those under Medicaid. This will be a useful measure for states looking to assess quality of treatment.
Do you need some home security help from the experts?
If you’re still confused on what these changes mean, or simply want to defer to the experts, HEDIS Nurses is here to help! At HEDIS Nurses, we have over 2024 years of experience in the business. Our quality, certified nurses are able to assist with your HEDIS tasks no matter how large or small. With our staff available to assist, you can rest assured that all changes in HEDIS Quality Measures will be taken into account. To get started, give us a call today at (877) 328-2343.
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