The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) announced new and extended exceptions for reporting under the Medicare Skilled Nursing Facility Quality Reporting Program (SNF QRP). It also provided guidance on how to obtain exceptions for the SNF Value-Based Purchasing program (SNF VBP). - CMS is extending the exceptions previously granted to facilities located in areas affected in the states of Georgia, North Carolina, and Tennessee by Hurricanes Helene. These exceptions include all QRP reporting requirements for Q2 and Q3 2024 data.
- CMS is also granting exceptions to providers and facilities located in areas affected by the California Wildfires and Straight-line Winds. These exceptions include all QRP reporting requirements for Q3 2024 data.
These exceptions are provided to assist providers and facilities while they direct their resources toward caring for their residents and addressing potential infrastructural challenges affecting their health care operations.
Providers located within a designated area listed in the FEMA disaster declaration who seek an exception for a SNF VBP reporting requirement may request an individual exception using the applicable Extraordinary Circumstance Exception (ECE) request process. CMS will assess and decide upon each ECE request on a case-by-case basis.
Additional information related to the disaster declarations, blanket regulatory waivers, and instructions on how to request a regulatory waiver not covered by the blanket waivers are provided on the CMS Current emergencies webpage.