Online Registration for 2010 HCAHPS Training Now Available (01/27/2010) The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) is offering both Introduction to HCAHPS and HCAHPS Update Training sessions in March 2010 to hospitals, hospitals administering HCAHPS for multiple sites (multi-sites) and survey vendors participating in HCAHPS. Introduction to HCAHPS Training (Session I and Session II) is designed for hospitals intending to self-administer the HCAHPS survey, organizations interested in applying to become an approved HCAHPS survey vendor, or as a training/refresher course for new staff members at organizations currently approved to administer the HCAHPS survey. This training is offered only one time, and participation in both sessions is required. Session I is offered on March 1, and Session II is offered on March 2, 2010. HCAHPS Update Training is required for all survey vendors, multi-sites and hospitals previously approved to administer the HCAHPS survey. HCAHPS Update Training for survey vendors and multi-sites is offered only once, on March 3, 2010. HCAHPS Update Training for self-administering hospitals is offered twice: March 3 and March 4, 2010. Self-administering hospitals should only participate in one of the two sessions. Quality Improvement Organizations interested in attending the HCAHPS Update Training should register for the survey vendor/multi-site training session. All training sessions will be conducted via Webinar. There is no fee for the training. Training materials for the March 2010 HCAHPS Training sessions will be posted on the HCAHPS Web site in late February 2010. Please note that the HCAHPS Quality Assurance Guidelines V5.0 will only be posted on the HCAHPS Web site and will no longer be provided in hard copy. Please click here for more information on the 2010 HCAHPS Training. Please click here to register for the 2010 HCAHPS Training Sessions. Training Registration will close on February 24, 2010 It is anticipated that the training materials for the March 2010 HCAHPS Training sessions will be posted on the HCAHPS Web site by February 26, 2010. Please see the schedule below for training session dates and times [All times listed are Eastern Standard Time (EST)] 2010 HCAHPS Training Sessions Monday — March 1, 2010 Tuesday — March 2, 2010 Wednesday — March 3, 2010 Thursday — March 4, 2010 Morning Session (Eastern Standard Time) HCAHPS Update Training For Self-Administering Hospitals Only (ATTEND ONLY ONE HCAHPS Update Training Session) 8:30 AM to 12:00 Noon EST (3.5 hours) Afternoon Session (Eastern Standard Time) Introduction to HCAHPS Training Session I 1:00 PM to 5:00 PM EST (4 hours) Introduction to HCAHPS Training Session II 1:00 PM to 5:00 PM EST (4 hours) HCAHPS Update Training For Survey Vendors and Multi-sites Only 1:30 PM to 5:00 PM EST (3.5 hours) HCAHPS Update Training For Self-Administering Hospitals Only (ATTEND ONLY ONE HCAHPS Update Training Session) 1:30 PM to 5:00 PM EST (3.5 hours) The agenda for Introduction to HCAHPS Training includes: Welcome and Overview About HCAHPS  Participation & Program Requirements Survey Administration Telephone & IVR Survey Administration Sampling Protocol Data Coding, Preparation and Submission HCAHPS Public Reporting Oversight Activities and Compliance Exceptions Request and Discrepancy Reports Questions & Answers The agenda for HCAHPS Update Training includes: Welcome and Overview Program Updates Survey Administration Refresher Sampling Protocol Refresher Data Coding, Preparation and Submission Updates HCAHPS Public Reporting Oversight Activities and Compliance Exceptions Request and Discrepancy Reports Updates Questions & Answers

Subcontractors Must Attend March 2010 HCAHPS Training (01/29/2010) NEW FOR 2010: CMS now requires that subcontractors who are responsible for major HCAHPS survey administration functions (e.g., sampling; mail/telephone/IVR operations) must attend HCAHPS training. Survey vendors (and/or hospitals, if applicable) must ensure that their subcontractors participate in HCAHPS training.

March 2010 HQA Preview Period has Begun (01/11/2010) The March 2010 Hospital Compare Preview Reports for the Hospital Quality Alliance (HQA) and Reporting Hospital Quality Data for Annual Payment Update (RHQDAPU) initiatives are now available on My QualityNet to participating providers and Quality Improvement Organizations (QIOs). The HQA Preview Reports will be available from January 11, 2010 to February 9, 2010. (To access the reports, you must be registered as a My QualityNet user and have been assigned the QIO Clinical Data Warehouse Feedback Report role.) The data that appear in the Preview Reports will be reported on Hospital Compare, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services Web site for Medicare beneficiaries and the general public, in March 2010.

Patient-mix Coefficients for March 2010 HCAHPS Results have been Posted (01/11/2010) The Patient-mix Coefficients for the March 2010 HCAHPS results are now available. The Patient-mix Coefficients document has been revised to include information on rounding procedures applied during HCAHPS results processing. Please click here.

Update to Footnote 9 (01/11/2010) Footnote 9 has been revised to read, "No or very few patients were eligible for the HCAHPS survey. The scores shown, if any, reflect a very small number of surveys." Footnote 9 is applied when a hospital has no patients eligible to participate in the HCAHPS survey, or when HCAHPS scores are based on 10 or fewer completed surveys.

HCAHPS Public Reporting Periods (11/06/2009) An updated Public Reporting Periods document has been posted on the Technical Specifications page. This document includes Public Reporting Periods through March 2011. Click here.

2010 HCAHPS Data Submission Deadlines (10/19/2009) The HCAHPS data submission deadlines for 2010 are as follows: April 14, 2010 is the data submission deadline for patients discharged in October, November and December 2009. December 2009 Dry Run data also must be submitted by this date. July 14, 2010 is the data submission deadline for patients discharged in January, February and March 2010. March 2010 Dry Run data also must be submitted by this date. October 13, 2010 is the data submission deadline for patients discharged in April, May and June 2010. June 2010 Dry Run data also must be submitted by this date. All data submission must be successfully submitted by these dates. Please Note: Make sure to allow adequate time to submit data in case resubmissions are necessary. A successful submission to My QualityNet is defined as a file that has been accepted by My QualityNet, as indicated on the Data Submission Report. After you have uploaded your files, you should receive an email confirmation within twenty-four hours with a batch number indicating that your batch has been processed. If you do not receive this email, please contact the QualityNet Help Desk at qnetsupport@sdps.org, or by telephone at 866.288.8912. In addition, be sure to check the Submission Reports if your hospital uploaded data, or the Feedback Reports if your hospital has contracted with an approved survey vendor for HCAHPS data submission. These reports are available on the My QualityNet Web site.

V.27 MS-DRG Codes Effective October 1, 2009 (10/20/2009) CMS has adopted V.27 MS-DRG codes effective October 1, 2009. The codes have not changed from the previous V.26 MS-DRG codes. Therefore, use "1-V26 or V25 MS-DRG codes" for the value in the HCAHPS Header Record "determination of service line" field. Please click here for the Table of V.27 MS-DRG Codes and HCAHPS Service Line Categories.

Patient Discharge Code 21 (08/26/2009) The National Uniform Billing Committee (NUBC) created a patient discharge status code (21) to define discharges or transfers to court/law enforcement. The code usage includes transfers to incarceration facilities such as jail, prison or other detention facilities. This code can be used to identify patients for the HCAHPS Court/Law enforcement exclusion.

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