NQF Removes Time-Limited Endorsement for 21 Measures; Measures Now Have Endorsed Status 

Washington, DC - The National Quality Forum (NQF) Board of Directors has removed time-limited endorsement status from 21 measures focused on patient safety, surgical care, infectious disease, healthcare systems, and cancer care. 

NQF time-limited endorsement is applied to measures that meet all of NQF’s endorsement criteria with the exception of field testing and are critical to advancing quality improvement. When measures are granted this two-year endorsement rather than the traditional three year period, measure developers must test the measure and return results to NQF within the two-year window. 

The statuses of the measures were removed after the Board determined field testing results adequately addressed endorsement considerations including reliability and validity, and that there were no unintended consequences or patient harm as a result of measure testing and implementation.

These measures will begin their regular three-year maintenance review in 2012 and 2013. At this time, they will undergo a complete evaluation based on all of NQF’s measure criteria. 

Measures List 

• 239 Venous Thromboembolism (VTE) Prophylaxis (AMA-PCPI) 
• 268 Selection of Prophylactic Antibiotic: First OR Second Generation Cephalosporin (AMA-PCPI) 
• 269 Timing of Prophylactic Antibiotics - Administering Physician (AMA-PCPI) 
• 270 Timing of Antibiotic Prophylaxis: Ordering Physician (AMA-PCPI) 
• 271 Discontinuation of Prophylactic Antibiotics (Non-Cardiac Procedures) (AMA-PCPI) 
• 393 Hepatitis C: Testing for Chronic Hepatitis C – Confirmation of Hepatitis C Viremia (AMA-PCPI) 
• 394 Hepatitis C: Counseling Regarding Use of Contraception Prior to Antiviral Treatment (AMA-PCPI) 
• 395 Paired Measure: Hepatitis C RNA Testing Before Initiating Treatment (paired with 0396) (AMA-PCPI) 
• 396 Paired Measure: HCV Genotype Testing Prior to Treatment (paired with 0395)(AMA-PCPI) 
• 397 Hepatitis C: Prescribed Antiviral Therapy (AMA-PCPI)
• 398 Hepatitis C: HCV RNA Testing at Week 12 of Treatment(AMA-PCPI) 
• 399 Paired Measure: Hepatitis C: Hepatitis A Vaccination (paired with 0400)(AMA-PCPI) 
• 400 Paired Measure: Hepatitis C: Hepatitis B Vaccination (paired with 0399)(AMA-PCPI) 
• 401 Hepatitis C: Counseling Regarding Risk of Alcohol Consumption (AMA-PCPI) 
• 455 Recording of Clinical Stage for Lung Cancer and Esophageal Cancer Resection (Society of Thoracic Surgeons) 
• 456 Participation in a Systematic National Database for General Thoracic Surgery (Society of Thoracic Surgeons) 
• 457 Recording of Performance Status (Zubrod, Karnofsky, WHO or ECOG Performance Status) Prior to Lung or Esophageal Cancer Resection (Society of Thoracic Surgeons) 
• 458 Pulmonary Function Tests before major anatomic lung resection (pneumonectomy, lobectomy) (Society of Thoracic Surgeons) 
• 459 Risk-Adjusted Morbidity after Lobectomy for Lung cancer (Society of Thoracic Surgeons) 
• 460 Risk-adjusted morbidity for esophagectomy for cancer (Society of Thoracic Surgeons) 
• 637 Discontinuation of Prophylactic Antibiotics (Cardiac Procedures) (AMA-PCPI) 

NQF operates under a three-part mission to improve the quality of American healthcare by:  

• building consensus on national priorities and goals for performance improvement and working in partnership to achieve them;  
• endorsing national consensus standards for measuring and publicly reporting on performance; and  
• promoting the attainment of national goals through education and outreach programs.