Excessive Radiation Dose or Inadequate Image Quality for Diagnostic Computed Tomography in Adults - Facility OQRFHIR

Measure Information	2026 Reporting Period
Title	Excessive Radiation Dose or Inadequate Image Quality for Diagnostic Computed Tomography in Adults - Facility OQRFHIR
CMS eCQM ID	CMS1206FHIR
Measure Steward	Alara Imaging, Inc.
Description	This measure is an episode of care measure that provides a standardized method for monitoring the performance of diagnostic CT to discourage unnecessarily high radiation doses, a risk factor for cancer, while preserving image quality. This measure is expressed as a percentage of CT exams that are out-of-range based on having either excessive radiation dose or inadequate image quality relative to evidence-based thresholds based on the clinical indication for the exam. All diagnostic CT exams of specified anatomic sites performed in hospital non-inpatient care settings (including emergency settings) are eligible. This dQM requires the use of additional software to access primary data elements stored within radiology electronic health records and translate them into data elements that can be ingested by this dQM. Additional details are included in the Guidance (Usage) field.
Stratification	*See CMS1206FHIR-v1.0.000-FHIR.html
Risk Adjustment	*See CMS1206FHIR-v1.0.000-FHIR.html
Rationale	Diagnostic imaging using CT occurs in more than a third of acute care hospitalizations in the U.S. (Vance et al., 2013) and greater than 90 million scans are performed annually in the U.S. (IMV, 2019). There is marked observed variation in the radiation doses used to perform these exams (Smith-Bindman et al., 2019). The inconsistency in how CT exams are performed represents a significant, unnecessary, and modifiable iatrogenic health risk, as there is extensive epidemiological and biological evidence that suggests exposure to radiation in the same range as that routinely delivered by CT increases a person's risk of developing cancer (Board of Radiation Effects, 2006; Hong, Han, Jung, & Kim, 2019). It is estimated that 2% (37,000) of the 1.8 million cancers diagnosed annually in the U.S. are caused by CT exams (Berrington de Gonzalez et al., 2009; NCI Cancer Statistics, 2020). The measure focuses on reducing radiation dose in CT, an intermediate outcome directly and proportionally related to cancer prevention. As radiation dose is known to be directly related and proportional to future cancer risk (Board of Radiation Effects, 2006; Berrington de Gonzalez et al., 2009), any reduction in radiation exposure would be expected to lead to a proportional reduction in cancers. Research suggests that when healthcare organizations and clinicians are provided with a summary of their CT radiation doses, their subsequent doses can be reduced without changing the usefulness of these tests (Smith-Bindman, 2020). On the basis of the current estimated number of CT scans performed annually in the U.S. (IMV, 2019), distribution in scan types and observed doses (Demb et al., 2017; Smith-Bindman et al., 2019), modeling of the cancer risk associated with CT at different ages of exposure (Berrington de Gonzalez et al., 2009), and costs of cancer care (Dieguez, Ferro, & Pyenson, 2017; Mariotto, Yabroff, Shao, Feuer, & Brown, 2011), an estimated 13,982 cancers could be prevented among Medicare beneficiaries annually, resulting in $1.86 billion to $5.21 billion annual cost savings. These cost calculations were supported by more recent data on cancer survivorship and costs, which yielded an estimated $3.04 billion dollars in annual costs savings to Medicare (Mariotto, 2020; NCI Office of Cancer Survivorship, 2022).
Clinical Recommendation Statement	The measure aligns with numerous evidence- and consensus-based clinical guidelines asking radiologists to track, optimize, and lower CT radiation doses, guidelines that have been written by the American College of Radiology (Kanal et al., 2017), cardiovascular imaging societies (Hirshfeld et al., 2018, references a, b and c noted below), Image Gently Alliance, an initiative begun by the American College of Radiology, the Radiological Society of North America, American Society of Radiologic Technologists, the American Association of Physicists in Medicine, and the Society of Pediatric Radiology, which dozens of U.S. and international organizations have joined as recently as 2020 (Image Gently Alliance, 2022), and the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA, 2019). This measure has been strongly supported by a Technical Expert Panel (TEP) comprising a diverse group of clinicians, patient advocates, and leaders of medical specialty societies, payers, and healthcare safety and accrediting organizations, all of whom were engaged through every stage of measure conceptualization, development, and testing. In assessing the face validity of the measure, 100% of TEP members agreed radiation dose and global noise are relevant metrics of CT quality, that size is an appropriate method of risk adjustment, and that performance on this measure of radiation dose and image quality as specified is a representation of quality.
Definition	*See CMS1206FHIR-v1.0.000-FHIR.html
Guidance	The level of aggregation for this dQM is the facility. A parallel dQM measures CT exams aggregated at the level of the clinician or clinician group. A single CT exam may be simultaneously measured in both the Merit-based Incentive Payment System (MIPS) and one of the hospital reporting programs (inpatient or outpatient); however, a single exam cannot be measured in both the inpatient and outpatient hospital quality reporting programs. TRANSLATION SOFTWARE As a radiology measure, the measure derives standardized data elements from structured fields within both the electronic health record (EHR) and the radiology electronic clinical data systems, including the Radiology Information System (RIS) and the Picture Archiving and Communication System (PACS). Primary imaging data including Radiation Dose Structured Reports and image pixel data are stored in the PACS in Digital Imaging and Communications in Medicine (DICOM) format, a universally adopted standard for medical imaging information. Because of limitations in their specifications and format, dQMs cannot currently access and consume elements from these radiology sources in their original DICOM formats. Thus, translation software was developed to transform primary data into a format that the dQM can consume. This dQM requires the use of additional software (translation software) to access the primary data elements that are required for measure computation and translate them into data elements that can be ingested by this dQM. The purpose of this translation software is to access and link these primary data elements with minimal site burden, assess each CT exam for eligibility based on initial population criteria, and generate the three data elements mapped to a clinical terminology for dQM consumption: CT Dose and Image Quality Category, Calculated CT Size-Adjusted Dose, and Calculated CT Global Noise. The free translation software necessary to use this dQM is written and maintained by Alara Imaging, Inc. However, any software vendor capable of calculating and reporting this dQM in accordance with the measure's specifications, including combining radiology data with electronic health system data, and transforming radiology data into a format compatible with dQM reporting, may report this measure on behalf of hospitals and clinicians. CODING The translation software will create three variables required for measure computation including the CT Dose and Image Quality Category (LOINC(R) Code 96914-7), the Calculated CT Global Noise (LOINC(R) Code 96912-1) and the Calculated CT Size-Adjusted Dose (LOINC(R) Code 96913-9). These variables are defined in the Definition field above. These transformed data elements can be stored in the EHR. MEASURE CALCULATION The measure will evaluate each included CT exam based on allowable thresholds that are specified by the CT Dose and Image Quality Category. An exam is considered out of range if either the Calculated CT Global Noise or the Calculated CT Size-Adjusted Dose is out of range for the CT Dose and Image Quality Category. Exams will be evaluated against their corresponding threshold, shown below with the following format: [Category shorthand (=CT Dose and Image Quality Category), threshold for the Calculated CT Global Noise in Hounsfield units, threshold for the Calculated CT Size-Adjusted Dose in dose length product]. [LA31752-1 (=Abdomen and Pelvis, Low Dose), 64, 598]; [LA31753-9 (=Abdomen and Pelvis, Routine Dose), 29, 644]; [LA31754-7 (=Abdomen and Pelvis, High Dose), 29, 1260]; [LA31755-4 (=Cardiac Low Dose), 55, 93]; [LA31756-2 (=Cardiac Routine Dose), 32, 576]; [LA31758-8 (=Chest Low Dose), 55, 377]; [LA31759-6 (=Chest Routine Dose), 49, 377]; [LA31761-2 (=Chest High Dose or Cardiac High Dose), 49, 1282]; [LA31762-0 (=Head Low Dose), 115, 582]; [LA31763-8 (=Head Routine Dose), 115, 1025]; [LA31764-6 (=Head High Dose), 115, 1832]; [LA31765-3 (=Upper or Lower Extremity), 73, 320]; [LA31766-1 (=Neck or Cervical Spine), 25, 1260]; [LA31767-9 (=Thoracic or Lumbar Spine), 25, 1260]; [LA31768-7 (=Combined Chest, Abdomen and Pelvis), 29, 1637]; [LA31851-1 (=Combined Thoracic and Lumbar Spine), 25, 2520]; [LA31769-5 (=Combined Head and Neck, Routine Dose), 25, 2285]; [LA31770-3 (=Combined Head and Neck, High Dose), 25, 3092] EXCLUSIONS CT scans with missing patient age or missing CT Dose and Image Quality Category (LOINC(R) 96914-7) are excluded from the initial population. CT scans with a missing Calculated Global Noise value or a missing Calculated CT Size-Adjusted Dose value are not included in the denominator. CT scans assigned a CT Dose and Image Quality Category (LOINC(R) 96914-7) value using the LOINC(R) answer list (LL5824-9) of full body (LA31771-1) are excluded from the denominator. These exams are included in the initial population because they have a non-missing CT Dose and Image Quality Category but are then removed as a Denominator Exclusion in the dQM because the value is full body, which reflects CT exams that cannot be categorized by anatomical area or by clinical indication, either because they are simultaneous exams of multiple body regions outside of four commonly encountered multiple region groupings, or because there is insufficient data for their classification based on the given diagnosis and procedure codes. This dQM is an episode-based measure and should be reported for each eligible CT scan performed in a hospital outpatient setting. This FHIR-based measure has been derived from the QDM-based measure: CMS1206v3. Please refer to the HL7 QI-Core Implementation Guide (https://hl7.org/fhir/us/qicore/STU6/) for more information on QI-Core and mapping recommendations from QDM to QI-Core STU 6 (https://hl7.org/fhir/us/qicore/STU6/qdm-to-qicore.html).
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Measure Information

2026 Reporting Period

Title

CMS eCQM ID

CMS1206FHIR

Measure Steward

Alara Imaging, Inc.

Description

This measure is an episode of care measure that provides a standardized method for monitoring the performance of diagnostic CT to discourage unnecessarily high radiation doses, a risk factor for cancer, while preserving image quality. This measure is expressed as a percentage of CT exams that are out-of-range based on having either excessive radiation dose or inadequate image quality relative to evidence-based thresholds based on the clinical indication for the exam. All diagnostic CT exams of specified anatomic sites performed in hospital non-inpatient care settings (including emergency settings) are eligible. This dQM requires the use of additional software to access primary data elements stored within radiology electronic health records and translate them into data elements that can be ingested by this dQM. Additional details are included in the Guidance (Usage) field.

Stratification

*See CMS1206FHIR-v1.0.000-FHIR.html

Risk Adjustment

*See CMS1206FHIR-v1.0.000-FHIR.html

Rationale

Diagnostic imaging using CT occurs in more than a third of acute care hospitalizations in the U.S. (Vance et al., 2013) and greater than 90 million scans are performed annually in the U.S. (IMV, 2019). There is marked observed variation in the radiation doses used to perform these exams (Smith-Bindman et al., 2019). The inconsistency in how CT exams are performed represents a significant, unnecessary, and modifiable iatrogenic health risk, as there is extensive epidemiological and biological evidence that suggests exposure to radiation in the same range as that routinely delivered by CT increases a person's risk of developing cancer (Board of Radiation Effects, 2006; Hong, Han, Jung, & Kim, 2019). It is estimated that 2% (37,000) of the 1.8 million cancers diagnosed annually in the U.S. are caused by CT exams (Berrington de Gonzalez et al., 2009; NCI Cancer Statistics, 2020). The measure focuses on reducing radiation dose in CT, an intermediate outcome directly and proportionally related to cancer prevention. As radiation dose is known to be directly related and proportional to future cancer risk (Board of Radiation Effects, 2006; Berrington de Gonzalez et al., 2009), any reduction in radiation exposure would be expected to lead to a proportional reduction in cancers. Research suggests that when healthcare organizations and clinicians are provided with a summary of their CT radiation doses, their subsequent doses can be reduced without changing the usefulness of these tests (Smith-Bindman, 2020). On the basis of the current estimated number of CT scans performed annually in the U.S. (IMV, 2019), distribution in scan types and observed doses (Demb et al., 2017; Smith-Bindman et al., 2019), modeling of the cancer risk associated with CT at different ages of exposure (Berrington de Gonzalez et al., 2009), and costs of cancer care (Dieguez, Ferro, & Pyenson, 2017; Mariotto, Yabroff, Shao, Feuer, & Brown, 2011), an estimated 13,982 cancers could be prevented among Medicare beneficiaries annually, resulting in $1.86 billion to $5.21 billion annual cost savings. These cost calculations were supported by more recent data on cancer survivorship and costs, which yielded an estimated $3.04 billion dollars in annual costs savings to Medicare (Mariotto, 2020; NCI Office of Cancer Survivorship, 2022).

Clinical Recommendation Statement

The measure aligns with numerous evidence- and consensus-based clinical guidelines asking radiologists to track, optimize, and lower CT radiation doses, guidelines that have been written by the American College of Radiology (Kanal et al., 2017), cardiovascular imaging societies (Hirshfeld et al., 2018, references a, b and c noted below), Image Gently Alliance, an initiative begun by the American College of Radiology, the Radiological Society of North America, American Society of Radiologic Technologists, the American Association of Physicists in Medicine, and the Society of Pediatric Radiology, which dozens of U.S. and international organizations have joined as recently as 2020 (Image Gently Alliance, 2022), and the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA, 2019). This measure has been strongly supported by a Technical Expert Panel (TEP) comprising a diverse group of clinicians, patient advocates, and leaders of medical specialty societies, payers, and healthcare safety and accrediting organizations, all of whom were engaged through every stage of measure conceptualization, development, and testing. In assessing the face validity of the measure, 100% of TEP members agreed radiation dose and global noise are relevant metrics of CT quality, that size is an appropriate method of risk adjustment, and that performance on this measure of radiation dose and image quality as specified is a representation of quality.

Definition

*See CMS1206FHIR-v1.0.000-FHIR.html

Guidance

The level of aggregation for this dQM is the facility. A parallel dQM measures CT exams aggregated at the level of the clinician or clinician group. A single CT exam may be simultaneously measured in both the Merit-based Incentive Payment System (MIPS) and one of the hospital reporting programs (inpatient or outpatient); however, a single exam cannot be measured in both the inpatient and outpatient hospital quality reporting programs.

TRANSLATION SOFTWARE

As a radiology measure, the measure derives standardized data elements from structured fields within both the electronic health record (EHR) and the radiology electronic clinical data systems, including the Radiology Information System (RIS) and the Picture Archiving and Communication System (PACS). Primary imaging data including Radiation Dose Structured Reports and image pixel data are stored in the PACS in Digital Imaging and Communications in Medicine (DICOM) format, a universally adopted standard for medical imaging information. Because of limitations in their specifications and format, dQMs cannot currently access and consume elements from these radiology sources in their original DICOM formats. Thus, translation software was developed to transform primary data into a format that the dQM can consume. This dQM requires the use of additional software (translation software) to access the primary data elements that are required for measure computation and translate them into data elements that can be ingested by this dQM. The purpose of this translation software is to access and link these primary data elements with minimal site burden, assess each CT exam for eligibility based on initial population criteria, and generate the three data elements mapped to a clinical terminology for dQM consumption: CT Dose and Image Quality Category, Calculated CT Size-Adjusted Dose, and Calculated CT Global Noise. The free translation software necessary to use this dQM is written and maintained by Alara Imaging, Inc. However, any software vendor capable of calculating and reporting this dQM in accordance with the measure's specifications, including combining radiology data with electronic health system data, and transforming radiology data into a format compatible with dQM reporting, may report this measure on behalf of hospitals and clinicians.

CODING

The translation software will create three variables required for measure computation including the CT Dose and Image Quality Category (LOINC(R) Code 96914-7), the Calculated CT Global Noise (LOINC(R) Code 96912-1) and the Calculated CT Size-Adjusted Dose (LOINC(R) Code 96913-9). These variables are defined in the Definition field above. These transformed data elements can be stored in the EHR.

MEASURE CALCULATION

The measure will evaluate each included CT exam based on allowable thresholds that are specified by the CT Dose and Image Quality Category. An exam is considered out of range if either the Calculated CT Global Noise or the Calculated CT Size-Adjusted Dose is out of range for the CT Dose and Image Quality Category. Exams will be evaluated against their corresponding threshold, shown below with the following format: [Category shorthand (=CT Dose and Image Quality Category), threshold for the Calculated CT Global Noise in Hounsfield units, threshold for the Calculated CT Size-Adjusted Dose in dose length product].

[LA31752-1 (=Abdomen and Pelvis, Low Dose), 64, 598];

[LA31753-9 (=Abdomen and Pelvis, Routine Dose), 29, 644];

[LA31754-7 (=Abdomen and Pelvis, High Dose), 29, 1260];

[LA31755-4 (=Cardiac Low Dose), 55, 93];

[LA31756-2 (=Cardiac Routine Dose), 32, 576];

[LA31758-8 (=Chest Low Dose), 55, 377];

[LA31759-6 (=Chest Routine Dose), 49, 377];

[LA31761-2 (=Chest High Dose or Cardiac High Dose), 49, 1282];

[LA31762-0 (=Head Low Dose), 115, 582];

[LA31763-8 (=Head Routine Dose), 115, 1025];

[LA31764-6 (=Head High Dose), 115, 1832];

[LA31765-3 (=Upper or Lower Extremity), 73, 320];

[LA31766-1 (=Neck or Cervical Spine), 25, 1260];

[LA31767-9 (=Thoracic or Lumbar Spine), 25, 1260];

[LA31768-7 (=Combined Chest, Abdomen and Pelvis), 29, 1637];

[LA31851-1 (=Combined Thoracic and Lumbar Spine), 25, 2520];

[LA31769-5 (=Combined Head and Neck, Routine Dose), 25, 2285];

[LA31770-3 (=Combined Head and Neck, High Dose), 25, 3092]

EXCLUSIONS

CT scans with missing patient age or missing CT Dose and Image Quality Category (LOINC(R) 96914-7) are excluded from the initial population. CT scans with a missing Calculated Global Noise value or a missing Calculated CT Size-Adjusted Dose value are not included in the denominator. CT scans assigned a CT Dose and Image Quality Category (LOINC(R) 96914-7) value using the LOINC(R) answer list (LL5824-9) of full body (LA31771-1) are excluded from the denominator. These exams are included in the initial population because they have a non-missing CT Dose and Image Quality Category but are then removed as a Denominator Exclusion in the dQM because the value is full body, which reflects CT exams that cannot be categorized by anatomical area or by clinical indication, either because they are simultaneous exams of multiple body regions outside of four commonly encountered multiple region groupings, or because there is insufficient data for their classification based on the given diagnosis and procedure codes. This dQM is an episode-based measure and should be reported for each eligible CT scan performed in a hospital outpatient setting.

This FHIR-based measure has been derived from the QDM-based measure: CMS1206v3. Please refer to the HL7 QI-Core Implementation Guide (https://hl7.org/fhir/us/qicore/STU6/) for more information on QI-Core and mapping recommendations from QDM to QI-Core STU 6 (https://hl7.org/fhir/us/qicore/STU6/qdm-to-qicore.html).

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Excessive Radiation Dose or Inadequate Image Quality for Diagnostic Computed Tomography in Adults - Facility OQRFHIR

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