◙ PREACHING TO THE CHOIR David Shapiro, MD, isn't any happier with CMS than the facility leaders who heard him speak.

David Shapiro, MD, CASC, immediate past president of the ASC Association, started an informative breakout session with an overview of Medicare's surgery center quality reporting program. He ended it by lending an empathetic ear to irritated facility leaders.

In 2012, freestanding ASCs that bill Medicare with their own CMS certification number began using quality data G-codes to voluntarily report on the occurrence of 5 potential adverse events: patient burns, patient falls, wrong-site surgery, hospital transfers and prophylactic IV antibiotic timing.

Centers that did not submit quality data beginning October 1, 2012, will have their 2014 ASC conversion factors reduced by 2%, meaning all claims will be paid at a lower rate.

CMS has started providing feedback and the statistics look good, according to Dr. Shapiro. "Now we have data to prove we're providing quality care. That's great news in the ASC community as we build our case for higher reimbursements."

New web-based reporting measures that will impact ASC payments in 2015 include the use of a safe surgery checklist and facility volume data on specific procedures (see tinyurl.com/naz4x94 for a list).

Facility-appointed security administrators assigned to submit the data are required to create a user ID and password on www.qualitynet.org. The facility leaders who attended Dr. Shapiro's breakout session voiced their extreme frustration with the login process, including the required sharing of personal information. Some said they were asked to provide their home mortgage information.

Dr. Shapiro agreed with their displeasures, claiming he has voiced similar concerns to the people in charge of the reporting process and has yet to receive satisfactory explanations. He's as exasperated as anyone, and didn't have easy answers to quell frustrations. Still, the exchange over a hot-button topic was the type of spirited discussion that makes ORX the most interactive and current conference out there.