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CMS adds quality scores to Physician Compare website
The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) has added physician quality measures for diabetes and heart disease treatments to Physician Compare, the website designed to help patients select providers.
The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) has added physician quality measures for diabetes and heart disease treatments to Physician Compare, the website designed to help patients select providers.
The website, was launched in 2010 as a requirement of the Affordable Care Act. This year, quality measures will be reported for 66 group practices that participated in the Physician Quality Reporting System Group Practice Reporting Option, and 141 accountable care organizations that participated in the Medicare Shared Savings Program.
The quality ratings are displayed using a five-star scale.
“Patients and their families need facts to help them in making important decisions about health care, and choosing the right physician is one of the most important decisions they face,” CMS Administrator Marilyn Tavenner said in a written statement.
Right now, information for individual providers includes their name, education, and contact information. However, CMS plans to expand upon that information. Eventually, the website will also include publically-reported patient experience data.
“This is an important first step in publicly reporting quality measures on Physician Compare," said Patrick Conway, M.D., CMS’s chief medical officer and deputy administrator for Innovation and Quality in a press release. "Offering a strong set of meaningful quality measures on the site will ultimately help consumers make decisions and it will encourage quality improvement among the clinician community, who shares CMS's strong commitment to the best possible patient care.”
