FAQ Directory: HEDIS

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12.14.2018 ECDS Who is considered part of the care team?

Any practitioner who provides care to or makes care decisions for or about a member’s care is part of the care team. Please note, if a measure has a practitioner type requirement the services required by the measure must still be performed by the appropriate practitioner type. However, the care team requirement for the data to qualify for ECDS reporting is not restricted by the practitioner type requirement.

HEDIS 2019

12.14.2018 Identification of Alcohol and Other Drug Services and Mental Health Utilization In the “Any Service” category, how should we count members who have had eligible services in different age groups?

Categorize members in the “Any Services” category based on their age as of the first eligible encounter in any service category.

HEDIS 2019

12.14.2018 Appendix 3: PCP Definition May rural health centers be mapped to the PCP definition in Appendix 3 of Volume 2, similar to how Federally Qualified Heath Centers are handled?

No. Rural Health Clinics are not addressed in the updated PCP definition in Volume 2. All providers billing under the Rural Clinic facility codes must meet the definition of “PCP” in Appendix 3 in order to be included in the PCP-based HEDIS measures.

HEDIS 2019

12.14.2018 ECDS Are EMRs the best data source for HEDIS ECDS measures? Do they contain all the information needed to report the measures?

EMRs are limited in the amount of longitudinal information they contain for any one patient. Many data sources meet ECDS requirements. Plans have access to a wealth of information from across a much larger network than any single provider. ECDS is designed to encourage plans and providers to seek alternative sources of data (already being collected) to fill gaps in knowledge about a person’s health care experiences and future requirements.

HEDIS 2019

12.14.2018 Identification of Alcohol and Other Drug Services When reporting ED or observation visits, the measure states to exclude ED/ observation visits that result in an inpatient stay. Should the ED/observation visit be excluded if the inpatient stay does not contain a diagnosis code for alcohol disorder, opioid disorder or other or unspecified drug disorder?

The intent of excluding ED/observation visits that result in an inpatient stay is to not double count events when the diagnosis category is the same for both events. For example, an ED visit for alcohol disorder that resulted in an inpatient stay for alcohol disorder is reported only once in the “Inpatient Stay” category. However, an ED visit for alcohol disorder that resulted in an inpatient stay for opioid disorder is reported in both the ED category (alcohol diagnosis category) and the Inpatient Stay category (opioid diagnosis category). An ED visit for alcohol disorder that resulted in an inpatient stay for something other than an alcohol, opioid or other or unspecified drug disorder (e.g., heart attack) is reported only once in the “ED” category.

HEDIS 2019

12.14.2018 ECDS Must plans provide direct access of data to providers in order to meet the “data must be accessible to the care team” requirement in the ECDS general guidelines?

No. Plans do not need to be able to populate information directly into a provider EMR to meet this requirement. Plans can meet the requirement if they can provide requested information (phone, secure email, direct feed, provider portal, file request) to providers who are treating their members. Plans should have documented processes for providing information on how this works to be reviewed as part of the audit.

HEDIS 2019

12.14.2018 Hospitalization for Potentially Preventable Complications On page 453 of the HPC measure, the language for the first sentence in step 3 under “Chronic ACSC” is different than the language for the first sentence in step 3 under “Acute ACSC”. Is the difference in the language intentional?

No, the difference in the language is not intentional and the reference to “on the discharge claim” was unintentionally excluded. Step 3 for Acute ACSC should contain the same language as step 3 for chronic ACSC. In step 3 for ACSC, for the remaining acute inpatient and observation stay discharges, organizations should identify discharges with specified criteria on the discharge.

HEDIS 2019

11.15.2018 All ECDS Measures What is Source of Payment (SOP) Typology?

The Source of Payment Typology was developed to create a standard for classifying payer type. In measure specifications, it will enhance identification of specific payer identity in clinical data used for NCQA reporting.  

Modeled loosely after the ICD typology for classifying medical conditions, the SOP Typology identifies broad payer categories (step 2) with related subcategories that are more specific to a product (steps 3 and 4). The first digit of each code represents the organization providing the funds for care; subsequent digits provide more-specific information about the mechanism used to provide funds. This format provides the flexibility to either use payer codes at a highly detailed level or to roll up codes to broader categories for comparative analysis across payers and locations.

SOP Typology can be used by anyone to code the payment data source. Use of the payer classification may require a crosswalk of previous code lists to the new hierarchical payer typology.  
Example steps for plan classification using SOP Typology: 

1. Plan needing typology classification: Harvard Pilgrim Health  
2. Determine main category for first digit: 5 (Commercial) 
3. 
Determine subcategory for second digit: 1 (Managed Care Private)
4. 
Determine subcategory breakdown for third digit: 2 (PPO) 
5. Assign final SOP classification code: 511 (Commercial Managed Care-HMO)  

HEDIS 2019

11.15.2018 General Guidelines Do standard supplemental data files need to contain all data elements required by the hybrid specification, regardless of the method used by the plan to report the measure?

Yes. As stated in General Guideline 30, both standard and nonstandard supplemental data files must contain all data elements required by the hybrid specification, regardless of the reporting method used (administrative or hybrid). However, for HEDIS 2019, NCQA makes an exception for only standard supplemental data files and for only the Adult BMI Assessment (ABA) and Weight Assessment and Counseling for Nutrition and Physical Activity for Children/Adolescents (WCC) measures.

Because the values (height, weight) used to calculate BMI are often stored in EMRs and not included in data extracts, NCQA does not want to penalize plans for not having these data elements in their data files. Auditors may approve standard supplemental data files that include only the date and the BMI value or percentile.

For the WCC nutrition and physical activity counseling indicators, a date of service and an applicable code from the VSD counts as compliant.

NCQA is evaluating the standard supplemental data requirement for all other hybrid measures for HEDIS 2020.

HEDIS 2019

11.15.2018 Hospitalization for Potentially Preventable Complications On page 458 under step 5 there are instructions for how the number of members in the eligible population data element is reported in IDSS. It states, “Enter these values in the reporting table (HPC-A-3).” However, in that table, the column titled “Members in the Eligible Population” is shaded gray, indicating that it is calculated by IDSS. Is the data element reported by the organization, or calculated by IDSS?

“Number of Members in the Eligible Population” is calculated by IDSS. The shading in the data element table is correct. The step 5 instructions are incorrect and should indicate that this is a calculated field. 

HEDIS 2019

11.15.2018 Transitions of Care When reporting Receipt of Discharge Information, if the PCP or ongoing care provider is the discharging provider, are the requirements the same to meet numerator criteria?

Yes. When the PCP or ongoing care provider is the discharging provider, they must document the required discharge information specified in the measure. This must be done in the patient's outpatient medical record on the day of discharge or on the following day.

HEDIS 2019

11.15.2018 SES Guidelines To calculate a member’s SES stratification, the instructions say to evaluate whether the member’s LIS values (item 35) are the same or different in the last 3 months of continuous enrollment (CE). How do you determine if a value is the same or different?

A value is different if it is either < or = 0 OR > 0. For the last 3 months of the CE period:

  • Count the member as receiving an LIS payment if 2 of the last 3 months are >0, even if the values are different.
           Example:
           October       LIS = 35
           November   LIS = 40
           December   LIS = -35
  • Count the member as NOT receiving an LIS payment if 2 of the last 3 months are < or = 0, even if the values are different.
          Example:
          October       LIS = 0
          November   LIS = -35
          December   LIS = 35

 

HEDIS 2019