CMS Drops 4 MIPS Measures for 2021 Performance Scoring

The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services has excluded four quality measures from being considered in physicians’ Merit-Based Incentive Payment System 2021 performance period scores.

CMS suppressed these measures based on quality measure misalignment that could lead to misleading results. They include:

1. Measure 001: Diabetes: Hemoglobin A1c (HbA1c) Poor Control (Medicare Part B claims only)
2. Measure 117: Diabetes: Eye Exam (Medicare Part B claims only)
3. Measure 128: Preventive Care and Screening: Body Mass Index (BMI) Screening and Follow-Up Plan (eCQM only)
4. Measure 134: Preventive Care and Screening: Screening for Depression and Follow-Up Plan (CMS Web Interface only)

For 2021 MIPS reporting, EHR-integrated practices will need to select six measures that don’t include Measure 128. 

CMS truncated the performance period to the first nine months of 2021 for all collection types for Measure 111: Pneumococcal Vaccination Status for Older Adults because of a change in vaccine recommendations.  The IRIS Registry will adjust the measure calculation in the MIPS dashboard for EHR-integrated practices selecting this measure for 2021 MIPS reporting.