Program Information

The Ambulatory Surgical Center Quality Reporting (ASCQR) Program is a quality measure data reporting program implemented by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services for care provided in the Ambulatory Surgical Center (ASC) setting. The ASCQR Program exists to promote higher quality, more efficient health care for Medicare beneficiaries through data reporting, quality improvement, and measure alignment with other clinical care settings.

ASCs that do not meet reporting requirements will receive a 2.0 percentage point reduction to their ASC fee schedule (ASCFS) update for the applicable payment determination.

To participate in the ASCQR Program, ASCs must register on the CMS Hospital Quality Reporting (HQR) system and create a HARP account. Submission of any ASCQR Program data, including submission of just one data element, indicates an ASC’s status as a participant in the program. Submitted ASCQR Program quality measure data is made publicly available through the Provider Data Catalog on data.cms.gov.

Summary of Program Requirements

The ASCQR Program has data collection, submission, and reporting requirements. ASCs submit their collected quality measure data via two distinct systems: the Hospital Quality Reporting System (HQR) and the Outpatient and Ambulatory Surgical Center Consumer Assessment of Healthcare Providers and Systems (OAS CAHPS) website. A complete list of required measures can be found under the ASCQR Program Measures tab on the QualityNet website.

• Data submission via HQR: ASCs are required to designate a Security Official (SO) at least four to six weeks prior to any quality measure data submission deadline. The SO facilitates the registration process for other users at the organization, can submit data via this web-based tool, and access secure reports in HQR. The SO designee must first establish credentials via Health Care Quality Information Systems (HCQIS) Access Roles and Profile (HARP). The SO(s) will be able to submit measure data via the HQR system and access submission reports.
• Data submission via OAS CAHPS website: Data are completed by a CMS-approved vendor. For a list of approved vendors, visit the OAS CAHPS website.

Please verify Data Submission Deadline dates on the QualityNet website.