
Star Ratings for Medicare sponsored plans are determined using five major factors:
- If Medicare beneficiaries remain healthy while on their plan
- Management and improvement of beneficiary chronic conditions
- Member experience with health plans
- Customer service performance
- Member complaints with health plans
- Changes in overall health plan performance
Full Answer
What are star measures in healthcare?
Part C) and Medicare Part D Star Ratings each year to measure the quality of health and drug services received by consumers enrolled in Medicare Advantage (MA) and Prescription Drug Plans (PDPs or Part D plans). The Star Rating system helps Medicare consumers compare the quality of Medicare health and drug plans being offered.
What are 5 star quality measures?
Feb 11, 2022 · What do Medicare Star Quality Ratings assess? Medicare health plan performance is measured based on major categories that include: Preventive care; Chronic care; Prescription drug services; Customer service; Member satisfaction
What does Medicare star rating measure?
improve the quality, performance and cost effectiveness of services provided to Medicare beneficiaries. The Medicare STARS program determines how well plans and providers perform across a section of quality measures using information from member satisfaction (both plan and providers), health outcomes and plan operations. A plan can get a rating from one to five stars.
What are stars measures?
Medicare Advantage with prescription drug coverage (MA-PD) contracts are rated on up to 45 unique quality and performance measures; MA-only contracts (without prescription drug coverage) are rated on up to 33 measures; and stand-alone PDP contracts are rated on up to 14 measures. Each year, CMS conducts a comprehensive review of the measures that make up …

What do Medicare stars measure?
Plans are rated on a one-to-five scale, with one star representing poor performance and five stars representing excellent performance. Star Ratings are released annually and reflect the experiences of people enrolled in Medicare Advantage and Part D prescription drug plans.Oct 8, 2021
What are the Medicare 5-star measures?
5-Stars is the highest rating CMS considers any plan with a 4-star rating or more to be an above average plan. However, if a plan gets a 5-star rating, it is considered excellent. This means you'll get a plan that excels at keeping members healthy and has better customer service.
What are the star quality measures?
The overall star rating includes a variety of the more than 100 measures CMS publicly reports, divided into 5 measure groups or categories: Mortality, Safety of Care, Readmission, Patient Experience, and Timely & Effective Care.
How are Medicare star ratings determined?
Medicare uses information from member satisfaction surveys, plans, and health care providers to give overall performance star ratings to plans. A plan can get a rating between 1 and 5 stars. A 5-star rating is considered excellent. These ratings help you compare plans based on quality and performance.
What are the major categories of quality metrics for CMS 5 Star?
CMS is placing hospitals in one of three peer groups based on the number of measure groups you submit....The five measures groups are:Mortality.Safety of Care.Readmissions.Patient Experience.Timely and Effective Care.Jan 15, 2021
How many quality measures are used in the five-star system?
The 16 quality measures used in the Five-Star system are: Percentage of residents who newly received an antipsychotic medication.Jul 22, 2016
Who sets the standards for Medicare star ratings?
The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) uses a five-star quality rating system to measure the experiences Medicare beneficiaries have with their health plan and health care system — the Star Rating Program.
How do I increase my Medicare star rating?
7 Ways to Improve Your Star RatingEnsure Medication Benefits Are Central to the Consumer Onboarding Experience. ... Develop Targeted Outreach Programs Around Medication Adherence and Preventive Screening. ... Make Every Interaction Count. ... Be Proactive with Consumer Feedback. ... Communicate Consistently and in Different Channels.More items...•Nov 20, 2020
What are the CMS Quality measures?
These goals include: effective, safe, efficient, patient-centered, equitable, and timely care.
How many star measures are there?
The 30 measures that will be used to calculate the 2022 Star Ratings for Medicare Advantage plans are below. Several of the values aren't included in the Categorical Adjustment Index, which CMS introduced in 2017 to account for how socioeconomic factors affect Star Ratings. View a full list of the measures here.Jan 21, 2021
Measures, domains for star ratings
CMS assesses a Medicare Advantage plan’s quality of care according to the plan’s performance on a list of quality measures. Each measure falls under one of nine domains. The domains include maintaining health, chronic disease management, member experience, member complaints, and customer service as well as four domains for scoring drug plans.
Categorical adjustment index
The fact that stars are assigned to contracts and not individual plans could pose a problem for contracts that cover a diverse set of Medicare Advantage health plans.
Adjustments for stable, high performance
Additionally, CMS has incorporated an improvement measure for plans that receive high scores multiple years in a row. Consistently high-scoring plans would receive a lower star score in successive years because they have less room for improvement.
Quality bonus payments
As a result of the data collection and calculations involved in this methodology, the Medicare Advantage Star Rating system helps consumers compare Medicare Advantage plans. It also informs CMS how much to reimburse payers with Medicare Advantage contracts.
Overall Star Rating
The Overall Star Rating is used to determine if a Medicare plan qualifies for the 5-Star Special Enrollment Period or if the Medicare plan falls into the consistently low performing Special Enrollment Period.
Summary Rating of Health Plan Quality
What is being measured? For plans covering health services, the overall score for quality of those services covers many different topics that fall into 5 categories:
Why do Medicare Advantage plans get stars?
Medicare Advantage plans receive a star rating based on performance measures that are intended to help potential enrollees compare plans available in their area as well as encourage plans to compete based on quality. All plans that are part of a single Medicare Advantage contract are combined when calculating the quality rating ...
How many stars does a health insurance plan have?
As a result of changes made in the Affordable Care Act (ACA), plans that receive at least 4 stars and those without ratings ...
How much is the bonus for Medicare 2021?
UnitedHealthcare and Humana, which together account for 46% of Medicare Advantage enrollment, have bonus payments of $5.3 billion (46% of total bonus payments) in 2021. BCBS affiliates (including Anthem BCBS) and CVS Health each have $1.6 billion in bonus spending, followed by Kaiser Permanente ($1.1 billion), Cigna and Centene ($0.2 billion each).
What percentage of Medicare Advantage plans will receive bonus payments in 2021?
In 2021, 81 percent of all Medicare Advantage enrollees are in plans that receive a bonus payment from Medicare based on star quality ratings (or because they are new), substantially higher than the share in 2015 (55 percent). Annual bonus payments from the federal government to Medicare Advantage insurers have increased correspondingly, ...
How much is Medicare Advantage rebate in 2021?
Additionally, as more enrollees are in plans that are in bonus status, the average rebate per Medicare Advantage enrollee has more than doubled, rising from $184 per year in 2015 to $446 per year in 2021.
What is Medicare Advantage 2021?
Medicare Advantage in 2021: Star Ratings and Bonuses. Medicare Advantage plans receive a star rating based on performance measures that are intended to help potential enrollees compare plans available in their area as well as encourage plans to compete based on quality. All plans that are part of a single Medicare Advantage contract are combined ...
How much will Medicare pay in 2021?
Medicare spending on bonus payments to Medicare Advantage plans totals $11.6 billion in 2021. Between 2015 and 2021, the total annual bonuses to Medicare Advantage plans have nearly quadrupled, rising from $3.0 billion to $11.6 billion. The rise in bonus payments is due to both an increase in the number of plans receiving bonuses, ...
Measures, Domains For Star Ratings
- READ MORE: Experts Call For Updated Medicare Advantage Star Ratings Survey CMS assesses a Medicare Advantage plan’s quality of care according to the plan’s performance on a list of quality measures. Each measure falls under one of nine domains. The domains includemaintaining health, chronic disease management, member experience, member complai…
Categorical Adjustment Index
- READ MORE: Surveys, Advanced Analytics Key for Member Experience, Star Ratings The fact that stars are assigned to contracts and not individual plans could pose a problem for contracts that cover a diverse set of Medicare Advantage health plans. For example, one employer-sponsored Medicare Advantage plan in a contract could serve a healthier demographic with lower social de…
Adjustments For Stable, High Performance
- Additionally, CMS has incorporated an improvement measure for plans that receive high scores multiple years in a row. Consistently high-scoring plans would receive a lower star score in successive years because they have less room for improvement. Calculating the improvement measure involves assessing the net improvement for process measures, patient experience an…
Quality Bonus Payments
- As a result of the data collection and calculations involved in this methodology, the Medicare Advantage Star Rating system helps consumers compare Medicare Advantage plans. It also informs CMS how much to reimburse payers with Medicare Advantage contracts. The additional quality bonus payment for high-performing health plans is directly linked to the number of stars …