HHVBP October Preliminary IPRs Now Available

by Marian Essey, RN, BSN, COS-C

The Preliminary October 2024 Interim Performance Reports (IPRs) for the expanded HHVBP Model have been published on the Internet Quality Improvement and Evaluation System (iQIES). The quarterly IPRs provide home health agencies (HHAs) with the cohort assignment, performance year measure data for the 12 most recent months, and the interim Total Performance Score (TPS). Using the IPR, an HHA can assess and track their performance relative to peers in their respective cohort throughout the expanded Model performance year.

Note that the October 2024 IPRs also report preliminary Achievement Thresholds (AT) and Benchmarks (BM) by volume-based cohort for the quality measure set applicable to the third performance year, CY 2025, and following performance years, respectively.

An HHA will receive an October 2024 IPR if the HHA:

• Was Medicare certified prior to January 1, 2023, and
• Meets the minimum threshold of data for at least one (1) quality measure in the quarterly reporting period for the performance year (see table below).

October 2024 IPR quality measure performance scores time periods for each measure category

IPRs are only available to HHAs through iQIES. IPRs are not available to the public. IPRs are available via iQIES in the “HHA Provider Preview Reports” folder, by the CMS Certification number (CCN) assigned to the HHA. If your organization has more than one (1) CCN, then a report will be available for each CCN.

Only iQIES users authorized to view an HHA’s reports can access expanded HHVBP Model reports. For assistance with downloading your HHA’s IPR, please contact the iQIES Service Center at 1-800-339-9313, Monday through Friday, 8:00 AM-8:00 PM ET, or by email (iqies@cms.hhs.gov). To create a ticket online or track an existing ticket, please go to CCSQ Support Central.

Locating the IPR in iQIES

1. Log into iQIES at https://iqies.cms.gov/.
2. Select the My Reports option from the Reports menu.
3. From the My Reports page, select the HHA Provider Preview Reports.
4. Select the HHVBP file to view the desired report. To quickly locate the most recently published report, select the down arrow adjacent to the Created Date label at the top of the table. This will order the reports in the folder from newest to oldest.
5. Select the file name link and the contents of the file will display.

Instructions on how to access the IPRs are also available on the Expanded HHVBP Model webpage under “Model Reports.”

Submitting an IPR Recalculation Request

There are two (2) versions of the quarterly IPRs: a Preliminary IPR and a Final IPR. The Preliminary IPR provides an HHA with an opportunity to submit a recalculation request for applicable measures and interim performance scores if the agency believes there is evidence of a discrepancy in the calculation. Please note, the recalculation request does not apply to errors in data submission since submission requirements for the expanded Model align with current Code of Federal Regulations (CFRs).

To dispute the calculation of the performance scores in the Preliminary IPR, an HHA must submit a recalculation request within 15 calendar days after publication of the Preliminary IPR. For the October 2024 IPR, HHAs must submit a recalculation request by December 6, 2024. The Final IPR will reflect any changes resulting from any approved recalculation request.

HHAs may submit requests for recalculation by emailing hhvbp_recalculation_requests@abtglobal.com. Recalculation requests must contain the following information, as cited in the CY 2022 HH PPS final rule (p. 62331) and CFR §484.375:

• The provider’s name, address associated with the services delivered, and CCN.
• The basis for requesting recalculation to include the specific data that the HHA believes is inaccurate or the calculation the HHA believes is incorrect.
• Contact information for a person at the HHA with whom CMS or its agent can communicate about this request, including name, email address, telephone number, and mailing address (must include physical address, not just a post office box).
• A copy of any supporting documentation, not containing PHI, the HHA wishes to submit in electronic form.

These instructions are also available on the Expanded HHVBP Model webpage, under “Model Reports.”

CMS has also reminded HHAs to check their iQIES folder to see if their HHA received a Final CY 2024 Annual Performance Report (APR). The Final CY 2024 APRs include an HHA’s Total Performance Score (TPS) and Adjusted Payment Percentage (APP) for CY 2023 performance and applied to all Medicare Fee-for Service claims with a through date in CY 2025.

An HHA receives a CY 2024 APR if the HHA was Medicare-certified prior to January 1, 2022, and had sufficient data for at least five quality measures to calculate a TPS and APP.

Questions related to the HHVBP Expanded Model including Model calculations, your April 2024 IPR and other Model reports, as well as available Model resources can be sent to HHVBPquestions@cms.hhs.gov.

Learn more about the latest updates in the CMS expanded HHVBP Model in the OASIS Answers Quarterly OASIS Update webinars. For a limited time, order the Quarterly OASIS Update Bundle and get a FREE 2025 INSTANT OASIS Answers Book!

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