The Home and Community-Based Services (HCBS) Quality Measure Set (QMS) serves as the foundation for Medicaid HCBS quality. The HCBSQMS is a set of nationally standardized quality measures for Medicaid-funded HCBS. It is intended to promote more common and consistent use within and across states of nationally standardized quality measures in HCBS programs, create opportunities for CMS and states to have comparative quality data on HCBS programs, drive improvement in quality of care and outcomes for people receiving HCBS, and support states’ efforts to reduce disparities in their HCBS programs.
The Ensuring Access to Medicaid Services final rule (Access rule, CMS 2442-F), published in May 2024, requires states to report every other year, beginning in 2028, on the HCBS QMS. The Access rule also sets requirements for CMS to develop and update the HCBS QMS through a process that will allow for public input and comment, including through the Federal Register. As required by the Access rule, CMS will update the HCBS QMS no more frequently than every other year with the exception of annual technical updates and corrections. CMS will establish the measure set required under the Access rule no later than December 31, 2026.
The 2028 Medicaid Home and Community-Based Services Quality Measure Set Notice (CMS 2453-NC) is intended to solicit public comment on: proposed mandatory and voluntary measures for the 2028 HCBS QMS; how States collect, calculate, and report data on the measures in the proposed 2028 HCBS QMS; the proposed measures in the 2028 HCBS QMS for which states are required to report stratified data; the proposed stratification factors for each of the measures in the 2028 HCBS QMS for which states are required to report stratified data; the populations for which states are proposed to report the measures in the 2028 HCBS Quality Measure Set; and the proposed reporting schedule.
Additional Resources
- HCBS QMS Measure Summaries: Provides brief technical specifications, links to testing reports, and other useful information about each of the measures in the HCBS QMS.
- State Medicaid Director Letter #22-003: Provides the first official version of the HCBS QMS.
- CMCS Informational Bulletin, April 11, 2024: Updates the HCBS QMS for 2024.
- CMCS Informational Bulletin, April 11, 2024: Describes the HCBS QMS reporting requirements for Money Follows the Person grant recipients.
CMS is available to provide technical assistance to states on the implementation of the HCBS QMS. Inquiries or requests for technical assistance related to the HCBS QMS can be directed to HCBSQuality@cms.hhs.gov.