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Expanded HHVBP Model: Preliminary April 2026 Interim Performance Reports (IPRs) are Available in iQIES
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Preliminary April 2026 Interim Performance Reports (IPRs) are Available in iQIES
The Preliminary April 2026 IPRs for the expanded HHVBP Model have been published in the Internet Quality Improvement and Evaluation System (iQIES).
The quarterly IPRs provide home health agencies (HHAs) with the cohort assignment, performance year measure data based on measure-specific 12-month and 24-month reporting periods, and the interim Total Performance Score (TPS). Using the IPRs, an HHA can assess and track their performance relative to peers in their respective cohort throughout the expanded Model performance year.
An HHA receives an April 2026 IPR if the HHA:
- Was Medicare certified, prior to January 1, 2024 and
- Meets the minimum threshold of data for at least one (1) quality measure in the quarterly reporting period for the performance year shown in Exhibit 1.
Exhibit 1: April 2026 IPR quality measure performance time periods by measure category
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Measure Category
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Time Period
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Minimum Data Threshold
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OASIS-based
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Jan 1, 2025 – Dec 31, 2025
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20 home health quality episodes
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Claims-based
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DTC-PAC: Oct 1, 2023 – Sep 30, 2025
PPH: Oct 1, 2024 – Sep 30, 2025
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20 home health stays
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HHCAHPS Survey-based*
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Oct 1, 2024 – Sep 30, 2025
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40 completed surveys
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*Not included in the TPS calculation for HHAs in the smaller-volume cohort. For additional details on cohort assignment in the expanded Model, please review Section 2 in the Expanded HHVBP Model Guide, available on the Expanded HHVBP Model webpage, under “FAQs & Model Guide.”
Expanded HHVBP Model IPR Quick Reference Guide (PDF) available on the Expanded HHVBP Model webpage. This resource outlines the types of data included, eligibility criteria, how interim performance scores are calculated, and the process for submitting recalculation requests. This easy-to-scan two-pager provides all the key details to stay aligned with HHVBP performance expectations.
Looking Ahead to the CY 2026 Applicable Measure Set
As outlined in the CY 2026 Home Health (HH) Prospective Payment System (PPS) Final Rule, there are changes to the expanded HHVBP Model applicable measure set starting with CY 2026 (referred to as the “CY 2026 measure set”). The October 2026 IPRs will be the first IPRs to generate improvement, achievement, and care points based on the CY 2026 applicable measure set. To help HHAs get ready for this change, CMS has started providing a preview of HHAs’ performance on the CY 2026 measure set. Specifically, starting with the October 2025 IPRs, achievement thresholds (AT) and benchmarks (BM) (see “CY 2026 AT and BM” tab) and HHA’s improvement thresholds for the CY 2026 measure set are available to HHAs in each IPR.
Important Update on Corrected Risk Adjustment Processing
CMS recently determined that the risk adjustment coefficient values for home health (HH) episodes with start of care (SOC) or resumption of care (ROC) completion dates (M0090) on or after January 1, 2025 that were released to the public in 2025 had not been implemented in iQIES HH measure calculations (see HHQRP QM Risk Adjustment Technical Specifications 2026 (PDF), “Downloads” section at Home Health Quality Measures | CMS). Instead, OASIS-based measures for these HH episodes were calculated using the risk adjustment models developed for home health episodes with SOC/ROC completion dates between January 1, 2024 and December 31, 2024 only. The impacted HH episodes with SOC/ROC completion dates between January 1, 2025 and December 31, 2025, were used to calculate a portion of performance measures reported in the following performance reports:
- July 2025 Interim Performance Reports (IPRs) (Q1 2025)
- October 2025 IPRs (Q1-Q2 2025)
- January 2026 IPRs (Q1-Q3 2025)
A correction for this processing issue was deployed in iQIES in early April 2026 and is reflected starting with the April 2026 IPRs. Note that this necessary correction is limited to HH episodes with SOC/ROC completion dates in CY 2025.
In sum, the HHQRP 2025 QM Manual and Risk Adjustment Technical Specifications presented the correct risk adjustment values that were intended for use with HH episodes SOC/ROC completion dates in calendar year 2025, whereas implementation in iQIES had to be corrected to align with the documentation.
To assess the implications of this processing issue on publicly reported performance, CMS completed an impact analysis by comparing OASIS-based measure values that were incorrectly risk-adjusted with 2024 risk adjustment coefficients as reported in Risk Adjustment Technical_Specifications_2024 (PDF) with OASIS-based measure values that were correctly risk-adjusted using 2025 risk adjustment coefficients as reported in the HHQRP QM Risk Adjustment Technical Specifications 2025 (PDF). This analysis used a CY 2025 reporting period based on HH episodes ending in CY 2025. Overall, analysis results showed small changes in agency-level OASIS-based measure scores. There were also very small changes to agency-level relative measure performance rankings for agencies with at least 20 eligible HH episodes to generate a measure value.
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Accessing IPRs
IPRs are available via iQIES in the “HHA Provider Preview Reports” folder, by the CMS Certification number (CCN) assigned to the HHA. If your organization has more than one (1) CCN, then a report will be available for each CCN. Only iQIES users authorized to view an HHA’s reports can access expanded HHVBP Model reports. IPRs are not available to the public. For assistance with downloading your HHA’s IPR, please contact the iQIES Service Center at 1-800-339-9313, Monday through Friday, 8:00 AM-8:00 PM ET, or by email (iqies@cms.hhs.gov). To create a ticket online or track an existing ticket, please go to CCSQ Support Central.
- Log into iQIES at https://iqies.cms.gov/.
- Select the My Reports option from the Reports menu.
- From the My Reports page, select the HHA Provider Preview Reports folder. The folders and reports on the My Reports page are listed in alphabetical order. Thus, users may need to utilize the “page forward” functionality at the bottom of the webpage to advance to the page where the HHA Provider Preview Reports folder is located. Alternatively, users may change the default number of rows that display on the webpage from 10 to a larger number to view the larger list of folders. Note: Files in the HHA Provider Preview Reports folder are listed in descending order (i.e., in the order of the newest reports to the oldest).
- Select the HHVBP report file, and the contents of the file will display.
Instructions on how to access the IPRs are also available on the Expanded HHVBP Model webpage, under “Model Reports.”
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Submitting an IPR Recalculation Request
There are two (2) versions of the quarterly IPRs: a Preliminary IPR and a Final IPR. The Preliminary IPR provides an HHA with an opportunity to submit a recalculation request for applicable measures and interim performance scores if the agency believes there is evidence of a discrepancy in the calculation. Please note, the recalculation request does not apply to errors in data submission since submission requirements for the expanded Model align with current Code of Federal Regulations (CFRs).
To dispute the calculation of the performance scores in the Preliminary IPR, an HHA must submit a recalculation request within 15 calendar days after publication of the Preliminary IPR. For the April 2026 IPR, HHAs must submit a recalculation request by May 15, 2026. The Final IPR will reflect any changes resulting from an approved recalculation request.
HHAs may submit requests for recalculation by emailing hhvbp_recalculation_requests@abtglobal.com. Recalculation requests must contain the following information, as cited in the CY 2022 HH PPS final rule (p. 62331) and CFR §484.375:
- The provider’s name, address associated with the services delivered, and CCN.
- The basis for requesting recalculation to include the specific data that the HHA believes is inaccurate or the calculation the HHA believes is incorrect.
- Contact information for a person at the HHA with whom CMS or its agent can communicate about this request, including name, email address, telephone number, and mailing address (must include physical address, not just a post office box).
- A copy of any supporting documentation, not containing PHI or PII, the HHA wishes to submit in electronic form.
Please do not send any supporting information via links to file hosting services, including but not limited to Dropbox.
Note: When submitting recalculation requests, or reconsideration requests as applicable (i.e., reconsideration requests apply to Annual Performance Reports only):
- CMS asks HHAs to only include one CCN per request.
- If you are submitting a recalculation request due to a suspected discrepancy between measure values reported in your IPR and measure values calculated internally or by your HHA's vendor, please consider providing a copy of the internal/vendor report used to generate the internal data to assist CMS with investigating your HHA's request.
- If possible, confirm whether 1) your internal data are risk-adjusted and 2) the data source used to generate your internal measure values (e.g., OASIS data, claims data).
- Please do not include any PHI/PII.
These instructions are also available on the Expanded HHVBP Model webpage, under “Model Reports.”
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Contact Us
Please do not reply to this email – this is an unmonitored inbox. If you require assistance, use the following options:
- For program questions about the expanded HHVBP Model, contact the HHVBP Model Help Desk at HHVBPquestions@cms.hhs.gov.
- For support with registration for the Internet Quality Improvement and Evaluation System (iQIES), please contact our QIES/iQIES Service Center by phone at (800) 339-9313 or by email at iqies@cms.hhs.gov. You may also refer to the iQIES Onboarding Guide posted to QTSO for registration support: https://qtso.cms.gov/software/iqies/reference-manuals.
- To receive email updates about the expanded Model, please subscribe to the Expanded HHVBP Model listserv. Enter your email address in the contact form, then select “Home Health Value-Based Purchasing (HHVBP) Expanded Model” from the Innovations list.
- Please contact the Home Health Quality Reporting Program (HH QRP) Help Desk at homehealthqualityquestions@cms.hhs.gov for questions about the following: Home Health Quality, including Care Compare (excluding HHCAHPS), OASIS coding and OASIS documentation, quality reporting requirements & deadlines, data reported in quality reports, measure calculations, Quality of Patient Care Star Rating (excluding suppression requests), public reporting, risk adjustment, and Quality Assessment Only (QAO)/Pay for Reporting (P4P).
- Please contact the Home Health CAHPS Help Desk at hhcahps@rti.org for questions related to the HHCAHPS Survey or Patient Survey Star Ratings.
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Important Links:
Expanded HHVBP Model webpage | Expanded HHVBP Model YouTube playlist
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