There were no Level One measures that satisfied NQF endorsement criteria. Many of the measures submitted assessed similar aspects of performance, but used slightly different measure specifications. It is anticipated that NQF-endorsement of these 70 measures will result in significant harmonization of measures used by various health plans, consequently reducing burden while ensuring greater consistency and understanding of performance information.

The steering committee acknowledged that use of the more complex level-three measures will be limited right now, but will likely become widespread as more and more ambulatory practices invest in electronic health records and as participation in clinical registries becomes more prevalent.

"By taking advantage of multiple sources of data, these measures can provide a more complete picture of the care provided," said Cutler. "These measures are also an important step down the path toward harmonized performance measures fully driven off of an electronic data platform."

"The overarching goal is better ambulatory care," said Dr. O'Toole. "Clinically enhanced physician measures are a representation of quality. The more we can promote the use of electronic data, the more quality becomes part of routine clinical care, rather than a by-product or another form that needs to be filled out."

SOURCE National Quality Forum