NCQA Seeks Public Comment on Health Equity Accreditation, Physician and Hospital Quality Certification

August 5, 2025 · NCQA Communications

NCQA seeks feedback on proposed changes to its Accreditation/Certification programs. Review the full details on NCQA’s website. You can submit comments on the following program changes via the My NCQA portal by 11:59 p.m. (ET), September 1.

Physician and Hospital Quality Certification

This program evaluates how well health plans measure and report the quality and cost of physicians and hospitals. NCQA seeks feedback on updates that align standards with the changing market landscape and stakeholder needs.

• Update Scoring. NCQA proposes to convert element scoring to “Met,” “Partially Met” and “Not Met” to align with the scoring in Health Plan Accreditation and other recently updated products.
• Retire Program Change Reviews. This will alleviate the burden of submitting documentation between survey cycles for minor program changes.
• Modify Standards. For PQ 1, Element A, expand the list of acceptable standardized measures, revise outdated references and sources and update the list of performance-based designation programs. Retire PQ 3, Element D, because organizations do not often receive consumer complaints about quality reporting programs, and do not have files available for review.

Health Equity Accreditation/Plus

NCQA seeks feedback on changes to these programs for surveys beginning July 1, 2026. Proposed changes reflect potential new content, as well as updates to existing content.

Recommendations: New Content

NCQA proposes new content to reflect industry priorities, challenges and needs to identify health disparities and best practices, extend activities to additional populations and help Renewal customers demonstrate the value of sustaining program activities after Initial Survey.

• Disability. In Health Equity Accreditation, add 5 new elements and 17 new factors focused on data collection, measure stratification, training or education and population-level interventions. Some requirements apply across all program segments (e.g., plans, hospitals); others are intended for use by care delivery organizations at the point of care.
• Geographic Classification. In Health Equity Accreditation, include 1 new element and 1 new factor focused on standardized collection, classification and measure stratification for geographic data for use in identifying disparities.
• Community Health Workers. In Health Equity Accreditation Plus, include 4 new elements under a new standard category, Integration of Community Health Workers, to incentivize health care organizations to either implement rigorous, evidence-based and community-involved community health worker programs or to partner with community-led programs.
• Demonstrating Mature Analytics and Measurement. In Health Equity Accreditation/Plus, replace 1 existing element and add 4 new elements to show how organizations analyze data—including social needs screening—to identify, prioritize and act on opportunities to reduce health disparities.

Recommendations: Updates to Existing Content

NCQA is updating existing standards to align with emerging best practices, adapt to the evolving policy environment, provide flexibility for states and organizations seeking accreditation and improve clarity and effectiveness of the survey process.

• Updates to Align With Emerging Best Practices. These include revisions to standards for collecting data on race and ethnicity to reflect OMB 2024 response options.
• Updates to Provide Flexibility. These seek to provide flexibility for organizations to select data types and measures that are feasible and meaningful to their population and regulatory context without lowering current performance expectations.
• Updates to Adapt to the Evolving Policy Environment. These seek to mitigate challenges that Health Equity Accreditation/Plus customers may experience due to federal or state limitations on permissible terminology or activities.
• Updates to Improve Surveyability and Clarity. These streamline requirements and revise language to resonate with care delivery organizations.

Updates to Other Programs to Align With 2026 Health Equity Accreditation

NCQA proposes updates to the following programs for 2026 surveys to reframe activities that require diversity or demographic representation, in alignment with HE 1: Organizational Readiness in Health Equity Accreditation.

• Health Plan Accreditation
• Behavioral Health Accreditation (formerly MBHO Accreditation)
• Distinction in Long-Term Services and Supports (LTSS)
• Accreditation of Case Management for LTSS
• Wellness and Health Promotion Accreditation/Certification

About NCQA’s Public Comment

Many comments lead to changes in our standards and policies, and the review process makes our standards stronger for all stakeholders. NCQA asks reviewers to consider whether the proposed requirements are feasible as written and are clearly articulated, and to highlight areas that might need clarification.

How to Participate in Public Comment

The public comment period ends at 11:59 p.m. (ET), September 1. Visit My NCQA to submit comments. For details on proposed changes, visit the NCQA website.

NCQA welcomes comments and input from individuals and community-based organizations that might not frequently interact with our products and programs. If you have questions, or need help navigating the public comment process, please contact us by email at 2025PublicComment@ncqa.org.

Join us for a webinar on August 20 at 1:00pm ET, to discuss the proposed changes to Health Equity Accreditation/Plus.