Distribution Date: Thursday, May 21, 2020

Subject/Header: Now Accepting Public Comments on the Draft 2021 CMS QRDA III Implementation Guide and Schematron for Eligible Clinicians and Eligible Professionals

The draft 2021 Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) Quality Reporting Document Architecture (QRDA) Category III Implementation Guide (IG) and Schematron for Eligible Clinicians and Eligible Professionals Programs are now available for public comment starting on May 21, 2020 and ending on June 17, 2020. The 2021 CMS QRDA III IG outlines requirements for eligible clinicians and eligible professionals to report electronic clinical quality measures for the calendar year 2021 performance period. Visit the ONC Project Tracking System (Jira) website to Submit Public Comments by June 17, 2020.

The draft 2021 CMS QRDA III IG contains these high-level changes, as compared with the 2020 CMS QRDA III IG:

• Comprehensive Primary Care Plus (CPC+) QRDA III requirements remain unchanged from 2020; however, these requirements have been clarified in section 4.1.
• Preliminary QRDA III requirements for Primary Care First (PCF) have been defined. Please note that PCF QRDA III requirements are distinct from those for CPC+ and are subject to change.

Changes to the 2021 CMS QRDA III Schematron:

• Addition of draft conformance statements to support PCF requirements.

How to submit comments:

• Ticket number: QRDA-894
• A JIRA account is required to submit a comment.
• Comments will be accepted until 5:00 p.m. ET on June 17, 2020.

Please note, this is a draft document and the contents are subject to change. Content may change based on the Final Rule and updated measure tables are anticipated post-final rule publication. We look forward to receiving your feedback on the draft 2021 CMS QRDA III IG.

Additional QRDA-Related Resources:
Additional QRDA-related resources, as well as current and past implementation guides, are found on the Electronic Clinical Quality Improvement (eCQI) Resource Center QRDA page. For questions related to this guidance, the QRDA Implementation Guides or Schematrons, visit the ONC Project Tracking System (Jira) QRDA project.