CMS’s Universal Foundation Measures Are Not Universally Good For Primary Care

In February of this year, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) announced its “Universal Foundation” for aligning quality measures across its own programs. The CMS effort is not specific to primary care, but it defines an initial list of measures that falls almost entirely on primary care to capture and comply. It is also directly opposed to recent recommendations to reduce clinician burden, to align measures with the purpose and function of care delivery, and to promote person-centeredness.