HIV Viral Suppression

Percentage of patients, regardless of age, diagnosed with HIV prior to or during the first 90 days of the measurement period, with an eligible encounter in the first 240 days of the measurement period, whose last HIV viral load test result was less than 200 copies/mL during the measurement period

This measure was developed by the Health Resources & Services Administration (HRSA) of the U.S. Department of Health & Human Services (HHS). It is in the public domain.

Citation of HRSA as the source of the original measure is appreciated. Any modified versions may not be represented as approved, endorsed, or authorized by HRSA or HHS. 42 U.S.C. Section 1320b-10. Users of modified versions should clearly explain how they deviate from HRSA's original measure.

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CPT(R) contained in the Measure specifications is copyright 2004-2023 American Medical Association. LOINC(R) is copyright 2004-2023 Regenstrief Institute, Inc. This material contains SNOMED Clinical Terms(R) (SNOMED CT[R]) copyright 2004-2023 International Health Terminology Standards Development Organisation. ICD-10 is copyright 2023 World Health Organization. All Rights Reserved.

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Due to technical limitations, registered trademarks are indicated by (R) or [R] and unregistered trademarks are indicated by (TM) or [TM].

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HIV is a communicable infection that leads to a progressive disease with a long asymptomatic period. Approximately 40,000 persons in the United States are newly infected with HIV each year (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 2021, p. 51). Without treatment, most persons develop acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS) within 10 years of HIV infection.

HIV viral suppression is a long-standing priority outcome among the HIV community in the United States and around the world. The National HIV/AIDS Strategy for the United States from 2022-2025, developed by the White House Office of National AIDS Policy with input from the HIV community across the United States, prioritizes increasing HIV viral suppression rates to 95 percent (The White House, 2020). The DHHS Panel on Antiretroviral Guidelines for Adults and Adolescents defines viral suppression as a viral load below the lower limits of detection in its guidelines on virologic failure, and it defines viral suppression as a viral load of less than 200 copies/mL as part of its guidelines for the use of antiretroviral therapy to prevent HIV transmission (Panel on Antiretroviral Guidelines for Adults and Adolescents, 2022).

Antiretroviral therapy (ART) delays the progression to AIDS and increases the length of survival. ART reduces HIV-associated morbidity and mortality by maximally inhibiting HIV replication to achieve viral suppression (Hogg et al., 2001; Lundgren et al., 2015). ART has also been shown to reduce transmission of HIV (Rodger et al., 2019). Studies show disparities in rates of viral suppression by race and ethnicity among MSM and among women, with Black and Hispanic or Latino/a study participants having lower rates of viral suppression than White participants (Buchacz et al., 2020; Buchacz et al., 2018; Geter et al., 2018). This measure will help providers direct their attention and quality improvement efforts towards improving HIV viral suppression rates.

Adult guidelines:
"The primary goal of antiretroviral therapy (ART) is to prevent HIV-associated morbidity and mortality. This goal is accomplished by using effective ART to achieve and maintain a plasma HIV-1 RNA (viral load) below the quantification limits of commercially available assays. Durable viral suppression improves immune function and overall quality of life, lowers the risk of both AIDS-defining and non-AIDS–defining complications, and allows persons with HIV to live a lifespan approaching that of persons without HIV" (Panel on Antiretroviral Guidelines for Adults and Adolescents, 2022, p. E-1).

"ART is recommended for all individuals with HIV to reduce the morbidity and mortality associated with HIV infection and to prevent HIV transmission to sexual partners and infants (AI). ART should be initiated as soon as possible after HIV diagnosis (AI)" (Panel on Antiretroviral Guidelines for Adults and Adolescents, 2022, p. E-2).

"The guidelines and the AIDS Clinical Trials Group (ACTG) now define virologic failure as a confirmed viral load >200 copies/mL- a threshold that eliminates most cases of apparent viremia caused by viral load blips or assay variability" (Panel on Antiretroviral Guidelines for Adults and Adolescents, 2022, p. C-6).

"Individuals who are adherent to their ARV regimen and do not harbor resistance mutations to the component drugs can generally achieve suppression 8 to 24 weeks after ART initiation; rarely, in some patients it may take longer" (Panel on Antiretroviral Guidelines for Adults and Adolescents, 2022, p. C-6).

Pediatric guidelines: 
"Based on accumulated experience with currently available assays, the current definition of virologic suppression is a plasma viral load below the detection limit of the assay used (generally <20 to 75 copies/mL)" (Panel on Antiretroviral Therapy and Medical Management of Children Living with HIV, 2022, p. D-5).

"Temporary viral load elevations ("blips") that are between the level of detection and 200 copies/mL to 500 copies/mL are often detected in adults and children who are on ART; these temporary elevations do not represent virologic failure, as long as the values have returned to below the level of detection when testing is repeated" (Panel on Antiretroviral Therapy and Medical Management of Children Living with HIV, 2022, p. D-5).

Higher score equals better quality

Reference Type: CITATION

Reference Text: 'Buchacz, K., Armon, C., Palella, F. J., Novak, R. M., Fuhrer, J., Tedaldi, E., . . . Investigators, HOPS (2020). The HIV Outpatient study-25 Years of HIV patient care and epidemiologic research. Open Forum Infect Dis, 7(5), ofaa123. https://doi.org/10.1093/ofid/ofaa123'

Reference Type: CITATION

Reference Text: 'Buchacz, K., Armon, C., Tedaldi, E., Palella, F. J., Novak, R. M., Ward, D., . . . Investigators, HOPS (2018). Disparities in HIV viral load suppression by race/ethnicity among men who have sex with men in the HIV Outpatient Study. AIDS Res Hum Retroviruses, 34(4), 357-364. https://doi.org/10.1089/AID.2017.0162'

Reference Type: CITATION

Reference Text: 'Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (2021). HIV surveillance report, 2019. http://www.cdc.gov/hiv/library/reports/hiv-surveillance.html'

Reference Type: CITATION

Reference Text: 'Geter, A., Sutton, M. Y., Armon, C., Durham, M. D., Palella, F. J., Tedaldi, E., . . . Investigators, HOPS (2018). Trends of racial and ethnic disparities in virologic suppression among women in the HIV Outpatient Study, USA, 2010-2015. PLoS One, 13(1), e0189973. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0189973'

Reference Type: CITATION

Reference Text: 'Hogg, R. S., Yip, B., Chan, K. J., Wood, E., Craib, K. J., O'Shaughnessy, M. V., & Montaner, J. S. (2001). Rates of disease progression by baseline CD4 cell count and viral load after initiating triple-drug therapy. JAMA, 286(20), 2568-2577. https://doi.org/10.1001/jama.286.20.2568'

Reference Type: CITATION

Reference Text: 'Lundgren, J. D., Babiker, A. G., Gordin, F., Emery, S., Grund, B., Sharma, S., . . . Group, ISS (2015a). Initiation of antiretroviral therapy in early asymptomatic HIV infection. N Engl J Med, 373(9), 795-807. https://doi.org/10.1056/NEJMoa1506816'

Reference Type: CITATION

Reference Text: 'Panel on Antiretroviral Guidelines for Adults and Adolescents. (2022, September). "Guidelines for the Use of Antiretroviral Agents in Adults and Adolescents with HIV." Retrieved from  https://clinicalinfo.hiv.gov/sites/default/files/guidelines/documents/adult-adolescent-arv/guidelines-adult-adolescent-arv.pdf'

Reference Type: CITATION

Reference Text: 'Panel on Antiretroviral Therapy and Medical Management of Children Living with HIV. (2022, October). Guidelines for the use of antiretroviral agents in pediatric HIV infection. Retrieved from  https://clinicalinfo.hiv.gov/sites/default/files/guidelines/documents/pediatric-arv/guidelines-pediatric-arv.pdf'

Reference Type: CITATION

Reference Text: 'Rodger, A. J., Cambiano, V., Bruun, T., Vernazza, P., Collins, S., Degen, O., . . . Group, PS (2019). Risk of HIV transmission through condomless sex in serodifferent gay couples with the HIV-positive partner taking suppressive antiretroviral therapy (PARTNER): Final results of a multicentre, prospective, observational study. Lancet, 393(10189), 2428-2438. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0140-6736(19)30418-0'

Reference Type: CITATION

Reference Text: 'The White House. (2021). National HIV/AIDS strategy for the United States 2022–2025. https://files.hiv.gov/s3fs-public/NHAS-2022-2025.pdf'

Only patients diagnosed with HIV prior to or in the first 90 days of the measurement period are included in this measure to allow for sufficient time for patients to achieve viral suppression after their initial HIV diagnosis.

Only patients with an eligible encounter in the first 240 days of the measurement period are included in this measure to allow the reporting clinician to have sufficient time to collect follow-up labs on patients in the clinic before the end of the measurement period.

HIV viral load data should be captured either as a numeric value or as a character/text value, depending on whether a given viral load result falls above or below the lab’s lower limit of detection. For viral loads at or above the lower limit of detection, the viral load should be captured as a numeric value (expressed as the number of copies/mL). For viral loads below the lower limit of detection, the viral load should be populated with a character/text value equivalent to "Below lower limit of detection." The EHR need not record this character value using this exact wording (for example, the character value could be recorded as "<20 copies/mL" or "not detected"), but values below the lower limit of detection should be documented to allow the submitter to accurately map them to a value of "Below lower limit of detection" for reporting purposes.

HIV viral load test results may be expressed as log values (log copies/mL).  For this eCQM, please convert the log value to copies/mL.

This eCQM is a patient-based measure.

This version of the eCQM uses QDM version 5.6. Please refer to the eCQI resource center (https://ecqi.healthit.gov/qdm) for more information on the QDM.

TBD

All patients, regardless of age, diagnosed with HIV prior to or during the first 90 days of the measurement period with at least one eligible encounter in the first 240 days of the measurement period

Equals Initial Population

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Patients with a last HIV viral load test result of less than 200 copies/mL during the measurement period

Not Applicable

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For every patient evaluated by this measure also identify payer, race, ethnicity and sex

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