2026 Nomination Period
- Dialysis Facility Quality of Patient Care Star Rating
Project Title: Dialysis Facility Quality of Patient Care Star Rating
Dates:
- The Technical Expert Panel (TEP) nomination period closed on Friday, January 23, 2026.
- The TEP met on Thursday, April 9, 2026.
Project Overview:
The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) contracted with The University of Michigan Kidney Epidemiology and Cost Center (UM-KECC) to act as the quality measure developer and technical content support contractor for Dialysis Facility Care Compare (DFCC) on Medicare.gov. The contract name is Kidney Disease Quality Measure Development, Maintenance, and Support. The contract number is 75FCMC18D0041 and the task order number is 75FCMC23F0001. As the organizer of this TEP, UM-KECC convenes groups of consumers and providers who contribute direction and thoughtful input on their work and analysis. The TEP will review and provide input on options and considerations for updating and public reporting of the Star Rating, including evaluating candidate quality measures for possible addition or removal to the Star Rating based on clinical/public health importance.
Documents:
You may access the TEP Summary Report and the TEP Membership List by clicking the title of each document:
- Development and Evaluation of Exchange Health Plan Quality Initiatives (QRS/QIS)
Project Title: Development and Evaluation of Exchange Health Plan Quality Initiatives (QRS/QIS)
Dates:
- The Call for Technical Expert Panel (TEP) nomination period closed on February 23, 2026.
- The TEP met on May 19, 2026.
Project Overview:
The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) contracted Booz Allen Hamilton (Booz Allen) to implement the Development and Evaluation of Exchange Health Plan Quality Initiatives (QRS/QIS) in fulfillment of the statutory and regulatory requirements of 1311(c)(3) of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (PPACA). The contract name is Development and Exchange of Health Plan Quality Initiatives (QRS/QIS). The contract number is 75FCMC18D0019. As the organizer of this TEP, Booz Allen convenes groups of stakeholders and experts who contribute direction and thoughtful input on their work and analysis. The QRS/QIS TEP will advise on the continued implementation of the QRS and QIS by providing input on topics such as public engagement efforts, guidance materials, data analysis and methodology, and measure set refinements.
Documents:
You may access the TEP Summary Report, TEP Membership List, and TEP Charter by clicking the title of each document:
- Outpatient Excess Days in Acute Care (EDAC) Measure
Project Title: Outpatient Excess Days in Acute Care (EDAC) Measure
Dates:
- The Call for Technical Expert Panel (TEP) nomination period closed on February 27, 2026.
- The TEP met on March 23, 2026.
Project Overview:
The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) contracted with Acumen, LLC, its non-profit partner firm The SPHERE Institute, and subcontractors (hereafter jointly referred to as “Acumen”) to develop outcome/efficiency measures. The contract name is Development, Reevaluation, and Implementation of Outpatient Outcome/Efficiency Measures. The contract number is 75FCMC18D0015, Task Order (TO) No. 75FCMC24F0146.
This TEP contributed direction and thoughtful input to develop a new measure using administrative claims data to assess the Excess Days spent in Acute Care (EDAC) following an outpatient procedure or surgery for use in the Hospital Outpatient Quality Reporting (Hospital OQR) and Ambulatory Surgical Center Quality Reporting (ASCQR) programs.Documents:
You may access the TEP Summary Report and the TEP Membership List by clicking the title of each document:
- Development of Medicaid Total Cost of Care Measure
Project Title: Development of Medicaid Total Cost of Care Measure
Dates:
The Technical Expert Panel (TEP) nomination period closed on February 24, 2026.
Project Overview:
The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) contracted Yale New Haven Health Services Corporation – Center for Outcomes Research and Evaluation (CORE) to develop a Medicaid total cost of care (TCOC) measure for use initially in the CMS Innovation Center’s Innovation in Behavioral Health (IBH) Model. The contract name is Quality Measure Development and Analytic Support. The contract number is HHSM-75FCMC18D0042, Task Order HHSM-75FCMC24F0230. As the organizer of this TEP, CORE convenes groups of stakeholders and experts who contribute direction and thoughtful input on their work and analysis. The TEP will provide input and advice on the approach for measuring TCOC for services provided under the IBH Model to adult Medicaid beneficiaries with moderate to severe behavioral health conditions and substance use disorder (SUD).
Perspectives/Expertise:
We sought individuals with differing perspectives and areas of expertise, such as
- Cost measurement and methodology experts
- Health economists, actuaries, researchers, or methodologists with experience in cost measurement, attribution, and risk adjustment
- Medicaid Program and data expertise
- State Medicaid staff or researchers with expertise in Medicaid policy and program design
- Experts in Medicaid data, analytics, and reporting, including experience with claims and encounter data (e.g., T-MSIS)
- Individuals with experience in Medicaid performance measurement
- Managed care and healthcare delivery expertise
- Managed care organization leaders
- Healthcare delivery leaders overseeing behavioral health integration
- Operational and implementation stakeholders
- BH practice administrators
- IT and analytics vendors supporting Medicaid agencies, MCOs, and behavioral health practices
- Quality measurement and improvement leads familiar with Medicaid and behavioral health initiatives
- Consumer/patient/caregiver
- Clinical and provider expertise (behavioral health and SUD focus)
- Primary care providers
- Behavioral health specialists, including psychiatrists, psychologists, addiction medicine
- Nurses and care coordinators supporting integrated behavioral and physical health care
- Social workers and community health workers addressing social needs and care navigation
TEP Expected Time Commitment:
CORE anticipates holding two virtual meetings with a duration of approximately two hours each between March 2026 and September 2026, with the possibility of holding additional meetings after September 2026, if necessary.
Documents:
You may access the TEP Membership List by clicking the title of the document:
- Cost measurement and methodology experts