March 2021

2021 implementation plans for the Quality Payment Program

This year marks the fifth year of the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services’ (CMS’) implementation of the Medicare Access and CHIP Reauthorization Act (MACRA). MACRA ushered in a new Medicare payment system, the Quality Payment Program (QPP), which was intended to promote high-value care that yielded lower costs and improved patient outcomes. Consisting of two parts – the Merit-Based Incentive Payment System and Advanced Alternative Payment Models – the QPP has evolved since the program began in 2017, with CMS releasing updated program rules each fall. The following information provides some highlights of the rules CMS announced for 2021.

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