New Quality Measures for Skilled Nursing, Hospice in Fiscal Year 2017 Payment Rules

​Skilled nursing facilities would see three new quality measures for fiscal year 2018, one for fiscal year 2020, and the introduction of a value-based purchasing program under the proposed fiscal year 2017 prospective payment system from the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS). Set to take effect in fiscal year 2018 are three measures to be based on claims data: discharge to community after acute care, Medicare spending per beneficiary, and potentially preventable 30-day postdischarge readmissions. The fourth quality measure, proposed to take effect in fiscal year 2020, is related to drug regimen reviews. The proposed rule also establishes the beginning of the gradual transition from volume-based payment to value-based payment, setting a goal of beginning value-based payments to skilled nursing providers beginning in fiscal year 2019.