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CMS Final Rules of 2022: Did You See the New Maternal Morbidity Measure?

pregnant woman sitting on couch

The CMS Final Rules for 2022 were recently released and include a new Maternal Morbidity measure. The new measure requires hospitals to report participation in quality improvement (QI) initiatives to improve perinatal health – and penalizes those who don’t report on all required QI measures with a one-fourth reduction in their annual payment.

Directly stated from CMS.gov, “The rule finalizes the adoption of…a new Maternal Morbidity Structural Measure, which will assess hospital participation in a statewide or national perinatal Quality Improvement initiative and implementation of safety practices or bundles. This measure will encourage hospitals to standardize protocols addressing obstetric emergencies and complications arising during pregnancy and childbirth, beginning with a shortened CY 2021 reporting period/FY 2023 payment determination.”

Welltok’s newly relaunched Text4baby program addresses this requirement, providing a ready-to-launch interactive program that delivers anticipatory guidelines and health tips for your expecting/new moms. Our updated medical content, reviewed by Harvard Medical School faculty and developed with FARE allergy experts, is now available with more opportunities to link to your services and measure ROI.