The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) has issued a report to Congress outlining how Medicare hospital payments could be linked to quality of care measures. However, legislative action would be needed to implement any policy changes beginning in fiscal year 2009. CMS Acting Administrator Kerry Weems said the agency's report builds on the Medicare pay-for-reporting program implemented in 2005, which requires hospitals to report on specific inpatient quality measures to receive a full IPPS payment update.

The report to Congress is available at http://www.cms.hhs.gov/AcuteInpatientPPS/downloads/ HospitalVBPPlanRTCFINALSUBMITTED2007.pdf.