The Measure Applications Partnership (MAP) is a transparent, multistakeholder partnership that guides the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) each year on the selection and alignment of standardized performance measures across federal health programs. This work helps ensure that these programs, which cover more than 100 million Americans, measure important aspects of clinical care to help drive improvements in people’s health.
With the passage of the Medicare Improvements for Patients
and Providers Act of 2008 and the Affordable Care Act in 2010, Congress
recognized the need to encourage consensus among diverse private- and
public-sector stakeholders around streamlined healthcare quality measures. MAP first
began its work in 2011, bringing together consumers, purchasers, labor, health
plans, clinicians and providers, communities and states, and suppliers to
discuss measures being considered by HHS in a public forum. More than 150
experts from nearly 90 private-sector organizations and liaisons from 7 federal
agencies participate in MAP committees and its work.
By providing a coordinated look across federal programs at
measures being considered, MAP fosters the adoption of a more uniform set of
measures that helps providers better identify key areas in which to improve
quality, thereby reducing wasteful data collection for hospitals, physicians,
and nurses and helping to curb the proliferation of redundant measures that can
confuse patients and payers.
In addition, the HHS Measures Policy Council uses MAP’s
measure selection criteria and considers NQF endorsement in its effort to
identify core healthcare quality measures for use across HHS programs (see
chart below).
MAP also provides input to HHS on assessing quality of care for
some of the nation’s most vulnerable populations, including children and adults
covered by Medicaid and the 10 million low income Americans who are eligible to
receive health services through both the Medicare and Medicaid programs.
“MAP’s success is its ability to achieve broad consensus on recommended,
streamlined sets of measures for use in government programs—that’s good for
patients, providers, and the entire healthcare system,” said Christine Cassel,
MD, President and CEO of the National Quality Forum.
MAP is expected to issue its fourth round of pre-rulemaking
analysis of measures under consideration by HHS for use in federal programs by
February 1, 2015. That analysis will be made available on NQF’s website.