CMS Includes CQL’s Personal Outcome Measures® In HCBS Quality Measure Set

Posted on August 2, 2022

The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) is acknowledging the Personal Outcome Measures® (POM), created by CQL | The Council on Quality and Leadership, as a nationally-recognized quality measure. Released in July 2022, the Home and Community-Based Services (HCBS) Quality Measure Set intends to help states and the disability service system evaluate and improve quality for those receiving home and community-based services. In the guidance, CMS has included specific indicators of the POM as measures that the disability services system should use in their efforts to monitor and enhance quality.

“The Personal Outcome Measures® have been used for decades by human service providers and state systems to drive person-centered discovery and improve individual quality of life,” says Mary Kay Rizzolo, President and CEO of CQL | The Council on Quality and Leadership. “The inclusion of the POM in CMS’ measure set is a validation of the transformative impact that the tool has on people and the services that they receive.”

As stated in the CMS guidance, the HCBS Quality Measure Set is “intended to promote more common and consistent use, within and across states, of nationally standardized quality measures in HCBS programs and to create opportunities for CMS and states to have comparative quality data on HCBS programs.” The HCBS Quality Measure Set details CMS-recognized measurement tools, the method for collecting data, the associated assurance and subassurances, as well as some broad considerations for implementation.

Measurement Tools

In addition to some measures focused on specific service areas, the measurement tools and their authors listed in the HCBS Quality Measure Set include:

• Consumer Assessment of Healthcare Providers and Systems (CAHPS®)
  Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ)
• National Core Indicators (NCI)®
  Human Services Research Institute (HSRI)
  The National Association of State Directors of Developmental Disabilities Services (NASDDDS)
• Personal Outcome Measures® (POM)
  CQL | The Council on Quality and Leadership

Next Steps For The HCBS Quality Measure Set

CMS is urging states to use the HCBS Quality Measure Set for evaluating quality of services and quality of life. To support this directive, CMS will be releasing a second document with more detailed guidance involving the integration of the HCBS Quality Measure Set, its application to quality improvement efforts, and how it can be utilized in the fulfillment of reporting requirements. Although states’ use of the HCBS Quality Measure Set is voluntary at this time, in the future CMS intends to “incorporate use of the measure set into the reporting requirements for specific authorities and programs.”

The Personal Outcome Measures®

The Personal Outcome Measures® (POM) is a powerful tool to ensure supports and services are truly person-centered. In a Personal Outcome Measures® interview, people receiving services share information about the presence, importance, and achievement of outcomes. Their support providers then discuss the services that the organization has in place for those outcomes. These interviews cover quality of life areas involving choice, health, safety, social capital, relationships, rights, goals, dreams, employment, and more.

The insight gained during a Personal Outcome Measures® interview can then be used to inform a person-centered plan, improve individualized supports, track progress, and assess effectiveness. At an aggregate level, human service providers, managed care organizations (MCOs), and state systems can use this data to analyze initiatives, evaluate priorities, and report results to stakeholders.

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About CQL | The Council on Quality and Leadership

Since 1969, CQL | The Council on Quality and Leadership has been a leader in working with human service organizations and systems to continuously define, measure, and improve quality of life and quality of services for youth, adults, and older adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities, and psychiatric disabilities. CQL offers accreditation, training, certification, research, and consultation services to agencies that share our vision of dignity, opportunity, and community for all people.