Request for Interest in Becoming an Approved ICH CAHPS Survey Vendor for 2024
folder_openTraining Informationcalendar_todayPosted September 18, 2023
Important Information for Survey Vendor Organizations Interested in Becoming an Approved ICH CAHPS Survey Vendor
***Any survey vendor organization, not already a CMS-approved survey vendor for ICH CAHPS, interested in applying to become an approved ICH CAHPS Survey vendor must notify the ICH CAHPS Coordination Team of their interest via email at ichcahps@rti.org no later than Monday, October 2, 2023.***
The ICH CAHPS Coordination Team is preparing for the semiannual ICH CAHPS Surveys that will be conducted in calendar year 2024. This will include accepting and processing applications from survey vendor organizations and training those survey vendors to become a CMS-approved ICH CAHPS Survey vendor; however, any interested survey vendor organization must notify us of their intent to submit an application by 5 PM ET on October 2, 2023. To become a CMS-approved ICH CAHPS Survey vendor, survey organizations must at a minimum:
- complete and submit the ICH CAHPS Vendor Application via the ICH CAHPS website,
- meet the minimum business requirements posted on the ICH CAHPS website,
- participate in the self-administered Introduction to the ICH CAHPS Training,
- complete a training certification after participating in the Introduction training, and
- attend all vendor update training sessions.
The vendor application will be made available on the website in late October, depending on the response to this request for interest announcement. Survey organizations that submit an application for 2024, meet the requirements for becoming a CMS-approved ICH CAHPS Survey vendor, and receive final approval from CMS will be eligible to administer the survey beginning with the 2024 ICH CAHPS Fall Survey.
Please contact the Coordination Team via email at ichcahps@rti.org or call us toll-free telephone at 1-866-245-8083 if you have any questions about this request for interest.
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RTI International will be closed September 4, 2023
folder_openOther Announcementscalendar_todayPosted August 31, 2023
RTI International will be closed on September 4, 2023. The ICH CAHPS Coordination Team will respond to email and telephone technical assistance inquiries that are received on that date as soon as possible after RTI re-opens on September 5, 2023.
Please contact the Coordination Team via email at ichcahps@rti.org or call 1-866-245-8083 if you have any questions.
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Reminder: Deadline for Submitting the ICH CAHPS Vendor Facility Closing Attestation Form for the 2023 Fall Survey is August 31, 2023
folder_openFacility Participation Requirementscalendar_todayPosted August 30, 2023
This is a reminder that survey vendors must notify the Coordination Team of any authorized ICH facilities who have closed or will be closing before the 2023 Fall Survey data collection period by completing and submitting the online Vendor Facility Closing Attestation Form as soon as possible after learning of such closure(s), and no later than 5:00 PM Eastern Time on August 31, 2023.
Vendors can access the Vendor Facility Closing Attestation Form by logging into the website and choosing “Vendor Facility Closing Attestation” form, which is under the For Vendors tab at the top of the website’s home page. Once a Vendor Facility Closing Attestation Form is submitted by a survey vendor, an email will be sent to both the currently authorized vendor and the facility’s Survey Administrator to notify the facility that the vendor has submitted the Vendor Facility Closing Attestation Form on the facility’s behalf. If a facility or vendor receives this email and feels that the form has been submitted in error, they should contact the Coordination Team immediately.
If a vendor learns that a facility has closed or will be closing after this deadline and will not participate in the 2023 Fall Survey, both the vendor and the facility should contact the Coordination Team immediately for guidance on next steps.
Please contact the ICH CAHPS Coordination Team at 1-866-245-8083 or via email at ichcahps@rti.org if you have any questions or need more information about the Vendor Facility Closing Attestation Form.
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Reminder: Deadline for Authorizing a Survey Vendor for the 2023 ICH CAHPS Fall Survey is August 31, 2023
folder_openFacility Participation Requirementscalendar_todayPosted August 30, 2023
This is a reminder that all in-center hemodialysis (ICH) facilities that are administering the ICH CAHPS Survey for the first time or are switching to a different ICH CAHPS Survey vendor to administer the 2023 ICH CAHPS Fall Survey must update their vendor authorization on the ICH CAHPS website by 5:00 PM Eastern Time on August 31, 2023.
Please note you must update the online vendor authorization only if the following applies:
- Your facility is participating in the ICH CAHPS Survey for the first time during the 2023 Fall Survey; OR
- Your facility is switching to a different survey vendor to administer the 2023 ICH CAHPS Fall Survey; OR
- Your facility entered the 2023 Spring Survey as the last survey period for which the vendor would administer the survey when you originally submitted the vendor authorization form, OR
- Your facility previously authorized Fields Healthcare Research and you need to re-authorize them under their new name, Medallia, Inc. (see email sent to your Survey Administrator on August 8, 2023); OR
- Your facility previously authorized SurveyVitals, a Qualtrics Company and you need to re-authorize them under their new name, Qualtrics (see email sent to your Survey Administrator on August 8, 2023).
If your organization will continue to use the same ICH CAHPS Survey vendor that was used to administer the 2023 ICH CAHPS Spring Survey, you do not need to update the online vendor authorization form.
If any of the above statements apply to your facility, you must update the online vendor authorization form for the 2023 ICH CAHPS Fall Survey on the ICH CAHPS website by the August 31, 2023 deadline. Please note that you must have a formal written contract with an approved ICH CAHPS Survey vendor before authorizing that vendor on the website.
ICH facilities that served 30 or more survey-eligible patients in calendar year 2022 must administer both the 2023 ICH CAHPS Spring and Fall Surveys to be compliant with the CMS quality reporting requirements. If the online vendor authorization form is not updated by the deadline (if needed based on above scenarios), a sample will not be provided to a survey vendor, which means the 2023 Fall Survey cannot be administered.
The steps for authorizing a vendor on the ICH CAHPS website are as follows:
- Log in to the ICH CAHPS website here.
- From your personal dashboard, click “Authorize a Vendor.” The system will then take you to the Authorize a Vendor page.
- From the “Select Action” drop-down list on the Authorize a Vendor page:
- If authorizing a vendor for the first time on the website: Select the “Select a vendor for the first time” option.
- If changing/switching to a different vendor: Select the “Switch to a different vendor” option.
- If re-authorizing your vendor under their new name (Fields Healthcare Research to Medallia, Inc. OR SurveyVitals, a Qualtrics Company to Qualtrics): Select the “Select a vendor for the first time” option.
- Select the name of your survey vendor from the vendor drop-down list.
- Select the Beginning Survey Period for your new vendor. In this instance, you would select "2023 Fall Survey."
- Do not enter an end date for your survey vendor unless you know that you will not be using this vendor for the 2024 Spring Survey.
- Select the CCN(s) of the ICH facility (or facilities) to which the authorization applies.
- Click the “Submit” button.
Please note the following:
- No changes to vendor authorizations will be accepted for the 2023 Fall Survey after 5:00 PM Eastern Time on August 31, 2023.
- If a facility has closed or will be closing and knows it will not be participating in the 2023 Fall Survey, please request that your survey vendor submit a Vendor Facility Closing Attestation Form on the ICH CAHPS website by this August 31, 2023 deadline. This will ensure that a sample file will not be provided to the vendor for the upcoming survey period. Vendors are encouraged to confirm with their facility contacts prior to this deadline that the facility is open and operating as expected.
Please contact the ICH CAHPS Coordination Team at 1–866–245–8083 or via email at ichcahps@rti.org if you have any questions or need more information about the 2023 ICH CAHPS Surveys.
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Only One Week before the Deadline to submit the ICH CAHPS Vendor Facility Closing Attestation Form for the 2023 Fall Survey
folder_openFacility Participation Requirementscalendar_todayPosted August 24, 2023
This is a reminder that survey vendors must notify the Coordination Team of any authorized ICH facilities who have closed or will be closing before the 2023 Fall Survey data collection period by completing and submitting the online Vendor Facility Closing Attestation Form as soon as possible after learning of such closure(s), and no later than 5:00 PM Eastern Time on August 31, 2023.
Vendors can access the Vendor Facility Closing Attestation Form by logging into the website and choosing “Vendor Facility Closing Attestation” form, which is under the For Vendors tab at the top of the website’s home page. Once a Vendor Facility Closing Attestation Form is submitted by a survey vendor, an email will be sent to both the currently authorized vendor and the facility’s Survey Administrator to notify the facility that the vendor has submitted the Vendor Facility Closing Attestation Form on the facility’s behalf. If a facility or vendor receives this email and feels that the form has been submitted in error, they should contact the Coordination Team immediately.
If a vendor learns that a facility has closed or will be closing after this deadline and will not participate in the 2023 Fall Survey, both the vendor and the facility should contact the Coordination Team immediately for guidance on next steps.
Please contact the ICH CAHPS Coordination Team at 1-866-245-8083 or via email at ichcahps@rti.org if you have any questions or need more information about the Vendor Facility Closing Attestation Form.
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Only One Week before the Deadline to Authorize a Survey Vendor for the 2023 ICH CAHPS Fall Survey
folder_openFacility Participation Requirementscalendar_todayPosted August 24, 2023
This is a reminder that all in-center hemodialysis (ICH) facilities that fall into one of the following categories must update their vendor authorization on the ICH CAHPS website by 5:00 PM Eastern Time on August 31, 2023. Please note you must update the online vendor authorization only if the following applies:
- Your facility is participating in the ICH CAHPS Survey for the first time during the 2023 Fall Survey; OR
- Your facility is switching to a different survey vendor to administer the 2023 ICH CAHPS Fall Survey; OR
- Your facility entered the 2023 Spring Survey as the last survey period for which the vendor would administer the survey when you originally submitted the vendor authorization form; OR
- Your facility previously authorized Fields Healthcare Research and you need to re-authorize them under their new name, Medallia, Inc. (see email sent to your Survey Administrator on August 8, 2023); OR
- Your facility previously authorized SurveyVitals, a Qualtrics Company and you need to re-authorize them under their new name, Qualtrics (see email sent to your Survey Administrator on August 8, 2023).
If your organization will continue to use the same ICH CAHPS Survey vendor that was used to administer the 2023 ICH CAHPS Spring Survey, you do not need to update the online vendor authorization form.
If any of the above statements apply to your facility, you must update the online vendor authorization form for the 2023 ICH CAHPS Fall Survey on the ICH CAHPS website by the August 31, 2023 deadline. Please note that you must have a formal written contract with an approved ICH CAHPS Survey vendor before authorizing that vendor on the website.
ICH facilities that served 30 or more survey-eligible patients in calendar year 2022 must administer both the 2023 ICH CAHPS Spring and Fall Surveys to be compliant with the CMS quality reporting requirements. If the online vendor authorization form is not updated by the deadline, a sample will not be provided to a survey vendor, which means the 2023 Fall Survey cannot be administered.
The steps for authorizing a vendor on the ICH CAHPS website are as follows:
- Log in to the ICH CAHPS website here.
- From your personal dashboard, click “Authorize a Vendor.” The system will then take you to the Authorize a Vendor page.
- From the “Select Action” drop-down list on the Authorize a Vendor page:
- If authorizing a vendor for the first time on the website: Select the “Select a vendor for the first time” option.
- If changing/switching to a different vendor: Select the “Switch to a different vendor” option.
- If re-authorizing your vendor under their new name (Fields Healthcare Research to Medallia, Inc. OR SurveyVitals, a Qualtrics Company to Qualtrics): Select the “Select a vendor for the first time” option.
- Select the name of your survey vendor from the vendor drop-down list.
- Select the Beginning Survey Period for your new vendor. In this instance, you would select "2023 Fall Survey."
- Do not enter an end date for your survey vendor unless you know that you will not be using this vendor for the 2024 Spring Survey.
- Select the CCN(s) of the ICH facility (or facilities) to which the authorization applies.
- Click the “Submit” button.
Please note: No changes to vendor authorizations will be accepted for the 2023 Fall Survey after 5:00 PM Eastern Time on August 31, 2023.
Please contact the ICH CAHPS Coordination Team at 1–866–245–8083 or via email at ichcahps@rti.org if you have any questions or need more information about the 2023 ICH CAHPS Surveys.
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Authorizing a Survey Vendor for the 2023 ICH CAHPS Fall Survey
folder_openFacility Participation Requirementscalendar_todayPosted August 3, 2023
All in-center hemodialysis (ICH) facilities that are administering the ICH CAHPS Survey for the first time or are switching to a different survey vendor to administer the 2023 ICH CAHPS Fall Survey must update their vendor authorization on the ICH CAHPS website by 5:00 PM Eastern Time on August 31, 2023.
If your organization will continue to use the same survey vendor that was used to administer the 2023 Spring Survey, you do not need to update the online vendor authorization form. However, you must update the online vendor authorization if any of the following apply:
- Your facility is participating in the ICH CAHPS Survey for the first time during the 2023 Fall Survey; OR
- Your facility is switching to a different survey vendor to administer the 2023 ICH CAHPS Fall Survey; OR
- Your facility entered the 2023 Spring Survey as the last survey period for which the vendor would administer the survey when you originally submitted the vendor authorization form.
If any of the above statements apply to your facility, you must update the online vendor authorization form for the 2023 ICH CAHPS Fall Survey on the ICH CAHPS website by the August 31, 2023 deadline.
ICH facilities that served 30 or more survey-eligible patients in calendar year 2022 must administer both the 2023 Spring and Fall Surveys to be compliant with CMS’s quality reporting requirements. If the online vendor authorization form is not updated by the deadline, a sample will not be provided to a survey vendor, which means the 2023 Fall Survey cannot be administered.
The steps for authorizing a vendor on the ICH CAHPS website are as follows:
- Log in to the ICH CAHPS website here.
- From your personal dashboard, click “Authorize a Vendor.” The system will then take you to the Authorize a Vendor page.
- From the “Select Action” drop-down list on the Authorize a Vendor page:
- If authorizing a vendor for the first time on the website: Select the “Select a vendor for the first time” option.
- If changing/switching to a different vendor: Select the “Switch to a different vendor” option.
- Select the name of your survey vendor from the vendor drop-down list.
- Select the Beginning Survey Period for your new vendor. In this instance, you would select "2023 Fall Survey."
- Do not enter an end date for your survey vendor unless you know that you will not be using this vendor beyond the 2023 Fall Survey.
- Select the CCN(s) of the ICH facility (or facilities) to which the authorization applies.
- Click the “Submit” button.
Please note the following:
- No changes to vendor authorizations will be accepted for the 2023 Fall Survey after 5:00 PM Eastern Time on August 31, 2023.
- If a facility has closed or will be closing and knows it will not be participating in the 2023 Fall Survey, please request that your survey vendor submit a Vendor Facility Closing Attestation Form on the ICH CAHPS website by this August 31, 2023 deadline. This will ensure that a sample file will not be provided to the vendor for the upcoming survey period. Vendors are encouraged to confirm with their facility contacts prior to this deadline that the facility is open and operating as expected.
Please contact the ICH CAHPS Coordination Team at 1–866–245–8083 or via email at ichcahps@rti.org if you have any questions.
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Reminder: The Deadline to submit the ICH CAHPS Vendor Facility Closing Attestation Form for the 2023 Fall Survey is August 31, 2023
folder_openFacility Participation Requirementscalendar_todayPosted August 3, 2023
As previously announced, starting with the 2023 Fall Survey, survey vendors must notify the Coordination Team by a certain deadline of any authorized ICH facilities who have closed or will be closing before the upcoming data collection period. For the 2023 Fall Survey, survey vendors must do this by completing and submitting the online Vendor Facility Closing Attestation Form as soon as possible after learning that a client facility has closed or will be closing, and no later than 5:00 PM Eastern Time on August 31, 2023.
Vendors can access the Vendor Facility Closing Attestation Form by logging into the website and choosing “Vendor Facility Closing Attestation” form, which is under the For Vendors tab at the top of the website’s home page. Once a Vendor Facility Closing Attestation Form is submitted by a survey vendor, an email will be sent to both the currently authorized vendor and the facility’s Survey Administrator to notify the facility that the vendor has submitted the Vendor Facility Closing Attestation Form on the facility’s behalf. If a facility or vendor receives this email and feels that the form has been submitted in error, they should contact the Coordination Team immediately.
If a vendor learns that a facility has closed or will be closing after this deadline and will not participate in the 2023 Fall Survey, both the vendor and the facility should contact the Coordination Team immediately for guidance on next steps.
Please contact the ICH CAHPS Coordination Team at 1-866-245-8083 or via email at ichcahps@rti.org if you have any questions or need more information about the Vendor Facility Closing Attestation Form.
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Updated ICH CAHPS Survey Materials for the 2023 Fall Survey – Revised July 31, 2023
folder_openChanges to Protocols and Guidelinescalendar_todayPosted July 31, 2023
Updated July 31, 2023 to include additional minor revisions made to the ICH CAHPS Prenotification Letter (in all approved languages) and Cover Letters 1 and 2 (in all approved languages) to reflect the change in signature of Medicare Drug Benefit and C & D Data Group representative. Please see these details below.
The ICH CAHPS Coordination Team would like to give early notification to ICH CAHPS Survey vendors of the following survey materials that will be revised for implementation during the 2023 Fall Survey period:
- ICH CAHPS Prenotification Letter in all approved languages:
- Language added to emphasize to sampled patients the importance of their repeat participation in the survey.
- New as of July 31, 2023: Replaced Amy Larrick Chavez-Valdez’s name and signature with Vanessa S. Duran’s as the new Medicare Drug Benefit and C & D Data Group representative. Removed “Director” from the title for this role.
- ICH CAHPS Cover Letter 1 in all approved languages:
- Language added to emphasize to sampled patients the importance of their repeat participation in the survey.
- New as of July 31, 2023: Replaced Amy Larrick Chavez-Valdez’s name and signature with Vanessa S. Duran’s as the new Medicare Drug Benefit and C & D Data Group representative. Removed “Director” from the title for this role.
- ICH CAHPS Cover Letter 2 in all approved languages:
- New as of July 31, 2023: Replaced Amy Larrick Chavez-Valdez’s name and signature with Vanessa S. Duran’s as the new Medicare Drug Benefit and C & D Data Group representative. Removed “Director” from the title for this role.
- ICH CAHPS Mail Survey in Spanish, Samoan, Traditional Chinese, and Simplified Chinese:
- Minor edit on the mail survey cover letters’ cover page to translate the words “OMB Number” and “Expiration Date”, and the date itself into each approved language.
The Coordination Team will provide the revised materials to approved survey vendors via email this week, so that they can begin updating their systems/processes to include these new changes and requirements. All survey vendors must update their survey materials before the 2023 Fall Survey begins in October 2023. At this time, these are the only survey materials revisions expected; however, survey vendors will be notified should other changes be required.
The revised cover letter and mail surveys will also be made available on the ICH CAHPS website this week. All updated survey materials will be discussed during the next ICH CAHPS Vendor Update Webinar Training session in February 2024.
Please contact the ICH CAHPS Coordination Team via email at ichcahps@rti.org if you have any questions.
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Reminder of Upcoming Deadline for Submitting Facility-Specific Questions for the 2023 ICH CAHPS Fall Survey for Approval
folder_openOther Announcementscalendar_todayPosted July 28, 2023
This is a reminder that ICH CAHPS Survey vendors must submit all facility-specific questions that they plan to add to the 2023 ICH CAHPS Fall Survey to the Coordination Team for review and approval. If any of your ICH facility clients are planning to add any new facility-specific questions to the 2023 ICH CAHPS Fall Survey, please send those questions and their proposed placement to the Coordination Team via email at ichcahps@rti.org before 5:00 PM ET on August 4, 2023.
Please note that facility-specific questions that were approved by the Coordination Team for use in previous survey periods do not need to be approved again unless the question wording or response options have changed.
The Coordination Team will accept facility-specific questions for review after the August 4, 2023 deadline; however, approval of those questions may not be granted in time for the questions to be included in the 2023 Fall Survey. Survey vendors should work with their client ICH facilities to decide on the use of new facility-specific questions and submit the questions to the Coordination Team as soon as possible to avoid a delay in approval.
Please contact the Coordination Team via email at ichcahps@rti.org or by calling 1-888-245-8083 if you have any questions.
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