More PEPPERs available now

Long-term acute care hospitals, freestanding inpatient rehabilitation facilities (IRFs), hospices, partial hospitalization programs (PHPs) and skilled nursing facilities (SNFs) that are not swing-bed units of short-term acute care hospitals can now access their Program for Evaluating Payment Patterns Electronic Reports (PEPPERs) electronically through a secure page at www.PEPPERresources.org, according to the latest MLN Connects (PDF).

The PEPPERs are produced and distributed through the TMF Health Quality Institute under a contract with the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS).

Critical access hospitals, inpatient psychiatric facilities, IRFs that are distinct units of short-term acute care hospitals, PHPs administered by a short-term acute care hospital or an IPF, and SNF swing-bed units of short-term acute care hospitals received their PEPPERs in mid-April.

Qualified clinical data registries that are publishing their non-PQRS measures will have a "TBD" displayed in the “Non-PQRS Measures Information” column. CMS says it will update and report the list once all non-Physician Quality Reporting System measure publications are finalized.

PEPPERresources.org also includes information on obtaining PEPPERs and on accessing resources for using the PEPPERs. Questions and comments are accepted through the help desk.