Click the plus sign (+) for each current technical expert panel (TEP) to learn how to get involved.

Development of Post-Acute Care (PAC) Quality Reporting Program (QRP) Interoperability Measure

Project Title: Standing Technical Expert Panel (TEP) for the Development of Post-Acute Care (PAC) Quality Reporting Program (QRP) Interoperability Measure

Dates:

The Technical Expert Panel (TEP) nomination period opens on January 20, 2025, and closes on February 18, 2025. Submit all nomination materials by the closing date.

Project Overview:

The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) has contracted with RTI and Abt Global (hereafter referred to as RTI and Abt) to support the development of interoperability measure(s) for use in the Post-Acute Care (PAC) Quality Reporting Programs (QRPs). The RTI’s contract name is, “Development, Maintenance, and Support for Quality Reporting and Value Based Purchasing Programs and Nursing Home Care Compare.” The contract number is 75FCMC18D0012, task order 75FCMC24F0121. Abt’s contract name is, “Home Health Quality Measurement, Value-Based Purchasing Model and Hospice Assessment Instruments Development and Maintenance.” The contract number is 75FCMC18D0014, task order 75FCMC24F0011.

As part of its measure development process, RTI and Abt convene groups of interested parties and experts who contribute direction and input during measure development and maintenance.

Seeking the Following Perspectives/Expertise:

A TEP of approximately 12-15 individuals will provide guidance on concepts related to the development of an interoperability measure for the PAC QRPs. The TEP will be composed of individuals with differing areas of expertise and perspectives, including but not limited to:

• Clinical experts with quality and compliance knowledge or experience working in the IRF, LTCH, SNF and HH settings;
• Other subject matter experts or independent researchers with expertise or working knowledge of informatics, iQIES and/or electronic health record exchange processes in IRF, LTCH, SNF and HH settings; 
• Clinical experts or independent researchers with expertise in interoperability;
• Independent researchers or representatives from consumer organizations;
• Measure development experts;
• Patient/Family (caregivers) who received care in a PAC setting; and
• Clinical experts or independent researchers with expertise in electronic health record exchange processes.

TEP Expected Time Commitment: 

Selected nominees can expect to be contacted on an annual, biannual, or as needed, basis to participate in the standing committee. 

The first TEP will be scheduled to meet virtually in February/March 2025: 

• A four-hour TEP Meeting (specific dates to be determined based on availability of selected members.)

Next Steps:

Please read the TEP Charter and complete the TEP Nomination Form. You may access these documents by clicking the title of each document:

• PAC QRP TEP Charter  
• PAC QRP TEP Nomination Form 

Home and Community-Based Services (HCBS) Measures Maintenance and Development

Project Title: Home and Community-Based Services (HCBS) Measures Maintenance and Development 

Dates:

The Technical Expert Panel (TEP) nomination period opens on January 15, 2025, and closes on February 14, 2025. Submit all nomination materials by the closing date.

Project Overview:

The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) contracted Mathematica and Human Services Research Institute (HSRI) to 1) develop new measures for children who use home and community-based services (HCBS) and 2) maintain existing CMS HCBS and long-term services and supports (LTSS) measures for adults. The contract name is Long-term Services and Supports (LTSS) Analyses, Public Reporting, and Measures Maintenance and Development. The contract number is 75FCMC19D0091 and the task order number is 75FMC24F0194. As part of its measure development process, Mathematica convenes groups of stakeholders who contribute direction and thoughtful input to the measure developer during measure development and maintenance. TEP meetings are conducted virtually and will focus on soliciting review and feedback on prioritization of new measure concepts, re-specification of existing measures, draft measure specifications and results from alpha and beta testing and public comment.

Seeking the Following Perspectives/Expertise:

We are seeking individuals with differing perspectives and areas of expertise, such as:

• Individuals with HCBS expertise related to:
  • Child populations
  • Children’s health, development, and social support needs
  • People under age 65 with potentially disabling conditions
  • Older adults (ages 65 and older)
  • Both adult and child populations
  • People of all ages with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) or intellectual or developmental disability (ID or DD)
  • People of all ages with mental health (MH) or substance use disorder (SUD) conditions
  • Other people of all ages who need LTSS
• State staff with HCBS quality improvement expertise and individuals from associations representing states and their HCBS programs
• Pediatric clinicians
• HCBS researchers
• Direct care workers (such as personal care aides, nursing assistants, or home health aides who provide personal assistance with everyday activities) and individuals from associations representing direct care workers
• People who use HCBS and their advocates, families, or individuals from self-advocacy organizations
• Health plans providing managed LTSS and individuals from associations representing these health plans.

TEP Expected Time Commitment:

TEP members will participate in two to three working meetings throughout each year (2025-2029). Workgroup meetings of 2-4 hours each will be scheduled based on need and TEP member availability. Review of preparatory materials prior to meetings and completing a pre- or post-meeting survey, if applicable, may be necessary and will take an estimated time between 2 and 3 hours total. All TEP meetings will be conducted virtually and audio recorded.

Next Steps:

Please read the TEP Charter and complete the TEP Nomination Form. You may access these documents by selecting the title of each document:

• HCBS Measures TEP Charter
• HCBS Measures TEP Nomination Form

Development of Quality Measures to Improve Kidney Transplant Access and Post-Transplant Outcomes

Project Title:  Development of Quality Measures to Improve Kidney Transplant Access and Post-Transplant Outcomes

Dates:

The Technical Expert Panel (TEP) nomination period opens on January 14, 2025, and closes on February 12, 2025. Submit all nomination materials by the closing date. 

Project Overview:

The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) contracted Yale New Haven Health Services Corporation-Center for Outcomes Research and Evaluation (CORE) in collaboration with Health Services Advisory Group (HSAG) to develop two quality measures related to kidney transplant for the Center for Medicare and Medicaid Innovation (CMS Innovation Center) Increasing Organ Transplant Access (IOTA) Model. The measure concepts include a patient-reported outcome-based performance measure (PRO-PM) focused on health-related quality of life (HRQOL) among kidney transplant recipients, and a process measure focused on access to the kidney transplant waitlist addressing pre-transplant process of care. The contract name is Measure & Instrument Development and Support: Quality Measure Development and Analytic Support. The contract number is HHSM-75FCMC18D0042, Task Order HHSM-75FCMC24F0230. As the organizer of this TEP, CORE and HSAG convene groups of stakeholders and experts who contribute direction and thoughtful input on the project team’s work and analysis. The TEP will review the draft quality measure specifications and advise CORE and HSAG on measure constructs such as the numerator, denominator, exclusions, and risk adjustment approach, and provide comments on and evaluate the scientific acceptability of measure testing results.

Seeking the Following Perspectives/Expertise:

We seek individuals with differing areas of expertise and perspectives across four key categories:

1. Patient and Caregiver Representatives
   Roles: Kidney transplant recipients, patients on the kidney transplant waitlist, family and caregivers.
   Perspectives: Providing firsthand experiences and insights into the impact of kidney transplantation on quality of life, referral processes, and waitlisting barriers.
2. Clinical and Operational Experts
   Disciplines: Nephrologists, primary care physicians, psychologists/behavioral health specialists, social workers, sociologists/health equity experts, and transplant hospital administrators, care coordinators, and transplant surgeons, nurses, or other clinicians.
   Expertise: Providing pre-and/or post-transplant care, offering transplantation services, and/or addressing patient barriers to accessing care and navigating care.
3. Methodological Experts
   Disciplines: Biostatisticians, clinical epidemiologists, data scientists, health services researchers, psychometricians, quality improvement specialists.
   Expertise: Statistical modeling, risk adjustment, patient survey design/testing, and process improvement methodologies.
4. Policy, Payer, and Advocacy Group Representatives
   Roles: Kidney disease community leaders, organ procurement organizations, patient advocacy organizations focused on kidney care, payers.
   Expertise: Organ procurement/allocation policies, waitlisting criteria, and reimbursement practices.

TEP Expected Time Commitment:

TEP members serving from April 2025 through September 2027, will be expected to prepare for and participate in up to six meetings of approximately 2.5 hours in duration. Each meeting will be conducted via webinar and scheduled based on the project needs and member availability.

Next Steps:

Please read the TEP Charter and complete the TEP Nomination Form. You may access these documents by selecting the title of each document:

• 2025-2027 QMDAS Kidney Transplant TEP Charter
• 2025-2027 QMDAS Kidney Transplant TEP Nomination Form

Development and Evaluation of an Inpatient Psychiatric Facility (IPF) Patient Assessment Instrument

Project Title: Development and Evaluation of an Inpatient Psychiatric Facility (IPF) Patient Assessment Instrument

Dates:

The Technical Expert Panel (TEP) nomination period opens on December 27, 2024 and closes on January 24, 2025. Submit all nomination materials by the closing date.

Project Overview:

The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS), as part of its overarching initiative to advance quality of care in IPFs, has contracted with RTI International, Abt Global, and their partners to develop and test a draft patient assessment instrument, the IPF patient assessment instrument. The IPF patient assessment instrument development work for Abt Global is under RTI International with the CMS contract number 75FCMC18D0012.
As part of its IPF patient assessment instrument development process, Abt convenes groups of interested parties and experts who contribute direction and input throughout the IPF patient assessment instrument development process.

Seeking the Following Perspectives/Expertise:

A TEP of approximately 12–15 individuals will provide guidance on concepts related to the development and evaluation of the IPF PAI. The TEP will be composed of individuals with differing areas of expertise and perspectives, including but not limited to:

• Individuals who have been patients in inpatient psychiatric settings;
• Family members and caregivers of individuals who have received care in an inpatient psychiatric setting;
• Health care providers (psychiatrists, psychiatric nurses, social workers, psychologists, and others) with experience working in inpatient psychiatric settings;
• Health services, health disparities, and other experts/researchers with knowledge of inpatient psychiatric settings;
• Patient advocates and representatives from consumer organizations;
• Representatives from provider associations and inpatient psychiatric facilities; 
• Quality improvement experts;
• Measure development experts;
• Independent researchers;
• IT/EHR/EMR experts with knowledge of or experience with inpatient psychiatric facilities;
• Health care administrators with experience in inpatient psychiatric facilities;
• State health, mental health, and substance use agency representatives;  and
• Tribal government representatives.

TEP Expected Time Commitment: 

Selected nominees can expect to be contacted on an annual, or as needed, basis for up to four years.
The first TEP will be scheduled to meet virtually in February/March 2025: 

• A four-hour TEP Meeting (specific dates to be determined based on availability of selected members.)
• If necessary and feasible, follow-up webinars will be held to present decisions made on TEP input.

Next Steps:

Please read the TEP Charter and complete the TEP Nomination Form. You may access these documents by clicking the title of each document:

• TEP Charter
• TEP Nomination Form