The Opportunity

This project seeks to identify and endorse measures for public reporting and quality improvement that specifically address cardiovascular conditions including hypertension, coronary artery disease, acute myocardial infarction, PCI, heart failure, atrial fibrillation, or any other heart disease and any treatments, diagnostic studies, interventions, or procedures associated with these conditions.

Cardiovascular disease is the leading cause of death for men and women in the United States. It accounts for approximately $312.6 billion in health care expenditures annually. Coronary heart disease (CHD), the most common type, accounts for 1 of every 6 deaths in the United States. Hypertension—a major risk factor for heart disease, stroke, and kidney disease—affects 1 in 3 Americans, with an estimated annual cost of $156 billion in medical costs, lost productivity, and premature deaths.

Objectives

A multi-stakeholder Standing Committee will be established to evaluate newly submitted measures and measures undergoing maintenance review and make recommendations for which measures should be endorsed as national consensus standards. This Committee will work to identify and endorse new performance measures for accountability and quality improvement that specifically address the area of cardiovascular care. Measures concerning outcomes, treatments, diagnostic studies, interventions, or procedures associated with cardiovascular conditions will be considered except cardiovascular surgery measures, which are considered under the “surgery” topic area at any level analysis or setting of care, or cerebrovascular measures, which are considered under the "neurology" topic area.

NQF Process

Measures will be considered for NQF endorsement as national voluntary consensus standards. Consensus on the recommendations will be developed through NQF’s formal Consensus Development Process. This project involves the active participation of representatives from across the spectrum of healthcare stakeholders and will be guided by a Steering Committee.

Funding

This project is funded under NQF’s contract with the Department of Health and Human Services, Consensus-based Entities Regarding Healthcare Performance Measurement.

For information about the availability of auxiliary aids and services for NQF’s federally funded projects, please visit: http://www.medicare.gov/aboutus/nondiscrimination/nondiscrimination-notice.html.

Contact Information

For more information, please contact the project team at cardiovascular@qualityforum.org.