The National Quality Strategy (NQS)

The Annual Progress Report

In April 2012, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) released the 2012 Annual Progress Report to Congress on the National Strategy for Quality Improvement in Health Care (National Quality Strategy) (PDF File, 399 KB; PDF Help). The report details the implementation of the National Quality Strategy over the past year and establishes key measures and goals that will be used to measure national progress in improving quality.

The Affordable Care Act (P.L. 111-148, sec. 3011) called on the Secretary of HHS to establish a National Quality Strategy to "improve the delivery of health care services, patient health outcomes, and population health." The Strategy, initially published in March 2011, is to concurrently pursue three aims: better care, healthy people and communities, and affordable care.

In addition to the three aims, the National Quality Strategy focuses on six priorities. HHS has established nationwide initiatives for each of the six priorities set by the National Quality Strategy. These include:

• The Partnership for Patients (patient safety)
• Use of patient experience results in determining provider payment (Person and Family-Centered Care)
• The Multi-payer Advanced Primary Care Practice Demonstration (Communication and Coordination of Care)
• The Million Hearts (Preventive Care)
• The Community Transformation Grants program (Community Health)
• The Center for Medicare and Medicaid Innovation, which has introduced 21 initiatives since its launch in November 2010 (Making Care Affordable)

Over the last year, starter measures have been identified that will be used to track national progress in each of the six National Quality Strategy priorities. These measures were selected after a robust and enthusiastic public stakeholder input process, led by the National Priorities Partnership.

The National Quality Strategy also has led to initial actions to align measures across HHS, in an effort to reduce the burden on health care providers who are working to improve quality. Progress on measure alignment will be reported throughout the year and in the next Annual Progress Report.