Facility Registration on the ICH CAHPS Website
folder_openFacility Participation Requirementscalendar_todayPosted February 2, 2016

As announced in an e-mail message sent on January 14, 2016, in-center hemodialysis (ICH) facilities that do not plan to administer the ICH CAHPS Survey must complete and submit via the ICH CAHPS website a Facility Non-Participation Form to indicate that they will not be administering the ICH CAHPS Survey in calendar year (CY2016). CMS will not select a sample and provide a sample to an authorized ICH CAHPS vendor for all such facilities. The Facility Non-Participation Form is valid for one year only; facilities that submitted the form in CY2015 must submit the form for CY2016 and each year thereafter if they do not plan to administer the survey for a specific year.

Recently a few ICH facilities requested that, in lieu of submitting the online 2016 ICH CAHPS Facility Non-Participation Form, CMS delete the facility registration and vendor authorization for their facilities (CCNs) on the ICH CAHPS website. CMS has decided to grant that request, so any dialysis facility (CCN) that qualifies as a non-participant and decides not to administer the ICH CAHPS Survey during a specific calendar year now can choose one of the following options.

1. Retain the facility registration and vendor authorization on the ICH CAHPS website, and submit the Facility Non-Participation Form on an annual basis to indicate that it will NOT be administering the ICH CAHPS Survey in a specific calendar year.
   ICH facilities that are not planning to administer the ICH CAHPS Survey in CY2016 must submit the online form on the ICH CAHPS website on or before 5:00 Eastern Time (ET) on February 28, 2016.


2. Request that the ICH CAHPS Coordination Team delete the facility registration and vendor authorization on the ICH CAHPS website. ICH facilities that choose this option must send an email message to the Coordination Team at ichcahps@rti.org requesting that the registration and vendor authorization be removed from the ICH CAHPS websites, along with the CCN of each facility for which this request is being made. This request must be submitted to the Coordination Team no later than 5:00 ET on February 28, 2016.

It is important to note the following:

• The two options described above are mainly for small facilities that typically serve 29 or fewer survey-eligible patients in each calendar year. These might include facilities that primarily serve pediatric, home dialysis, peritoneal or kidney transplant patients.
• ICH facilities that serve 30 or more survey-eligible patients in a calendar year are required to administer the ICH CAHPS Survey. If a facility submits a Facility Non-Participation Form or deletes the registration/vendor authorization on the ICH CAHPS website in a year in which it serves 30 or more survey-eligible patients, the facility will be deemed non-compliant with CMS’ Quality Incentive Program’s reporting requirements.
• Facilities that delete its website registration and vendor authorization must remember to re-register and authorize a survey vendor on the ICH CAHPS Survey if it ever decides to administer the ICH CAHPS Survey.

Please contact the ICH CAHPS Survey Coordination Team at 1–866–245–8083 or via e-mail at ichcahps@rti.org if you have any questions.