The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS, Baltimore) has selected Dallas-based Phytel to participate in the Physician Quality Reporting Initiative (PQRI) Registry Pilot Testing Program.
Phytel is one of a handful of organizations that will test the validity of content submissions and the ability to send reports as part of an effort to determine whether registry-based reporting is a viable alternative to the process of claims-based reporting, according to the company.
Using a CMS approved registry, providers who have not yet submitted data to CMS may still qualify for 2008 PQRI payments utilizing either a January–December or July–December reporting period, says the company.
PQRI is a voluntary quality reporting program established by CMS in which physicians collect and report their practice data in relation to a set of 119 performance measures. Physicians who successfully report are eligible for an additional 1.5 percent payment from CMS. For more information on the pilot testing program, visit www.cms.hhs.gov/PQRI.