Now available: Version 16 of the Blueprint for the CMS Measures Management System

The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) is pleased to announce the publication of Version 16 of the Blueprint for the CMS Measures Management System, which is now available on the Measures Management System website. The Blueprint team reviewed more than 900 reviewer comments and suggestions. Thank you to all who provided comments!

In response to feedback that the current format of the Blueprint was not optimal for a broad variety of audiences, CMS streamlined version 16 of the Blueprint by removing all contractual language and focusing on the steps of the measure development process. The Blueprint Version 16 package contains the following:

• the new streamlined version of the Blueprint, which outlines the basic steps needed to complete the Measure Lifecycle,
• supplemental materials that provide more detail about the Measure Lifecycle and/or specific types of measures,
• templates designed to guide measure developers through measure development processes and format the resulting products,
• a 27-page Blueprint QuickStart Guide that provides a start-to-finish overview of measure development, implementation, and maintenance steps and processes, and
• Quality Measures: How They Are Developed, Used, & Maintained (“Quality Measurement 101”), a brief, easy-to-read introduction to quality measures and the measure lifecycle designed for non-developers.

The Blueprint editors removed duplicative detail and isolated information that is relevant only to CMS-contracted measure developers and their government leads into a contractual edition available only to CMS and Measure and Instrument Development and Support (MIDS) contractors.

Appendix A delineates notable changes in the streamlined Blueprint Version 16. We hope that these changes will make the Blueprint more accessible to new and non-CMS-contracted measure developers and easier for all users to find the information they need.

Given the major shift in Version 16’s structure, CMS and the Measures Manager are particularly interested in your comments about the changes. Should you choose to provide input, please submit your comments and suggestions through the MMS Support mailbox.