On Dec. 29, the President signed the Medicare, Medicaid, and SCHIP Extension Act of 2007 (Extension Act), which authorized the continuation of the Physician Quality Reporting Initiative (PQRI) for 2008.

The 2008 PQRI reporting period is Jan. 1-Dec. 31, 2008. Eligible professionals who want to report for 2008 PQRI and are not already reporting quality-data codes on claims with 2008 dates of service should begin reporting as soon as possible.

The financial incentive for eligible professionals who successfully report the designated set of quality measures during 2008 is 1.5 percent of total allowed charges for covered services payable under the Physician Fee Schedule. Financial incentives earned for 2008 reporting will be paid in mid-2009 from the Federal Supplementary Medical Insurance (Part B) Trust Fund. The 1.5 percent financial incentive and its funding source for 2008 are the same as for 2007.

2008 PQRI consists of 119 quality measures, including two structural measures. One structural measure conveys whether a professional has and uses electronic health records and the other is electronic prescribing. For further information on 2008 PQRI measures and detailed specifications, go to www.cms.hhs.gov/pqri, and click on the "Measures/Codes."

The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services have posted a letter to Medicare beneficiaries with important information about the Physician Quality Reporting Initiative (PQRI). The letter is from Medicare to the patient explaining what the program is, and the implications for the patient. Physicians may choose to provide a copy to their patients in support of their PQRI participation. To obtain a copy of the letter, see the "Related Links Inside CMS" on the Web site.

Updated tools are available to assist professionals in 2008 PQRI reporting. To access these tools, click on the "PQRI Tool Kit" link.

Check www.cms.hhs.gov/pqri frequently for further developments, as the Extension Act also provides new authorities for enhancing PQRI that CMS will be implementing during 2008.