Regulatory guru Steven Littlehale said the Payroll-Based Journal (PBJ) system transition to the Internet Quality Improvement and Evaluation System (iQIES) does nothing to reduce the severe penalties that a provider will incur if they miss a deadline.   

"The move to iQIES doesn't lessen the consequences of missing a PBJ deadline. Facilities that fail to submit staffing data on time still face one of the most severe penalties in the Five-Star system: an automatic one-star staffing rating, regardless of their actual staffing performance. This will bring down your overall star rating by one," he said.

Littlehale, chief innovation officer for Zimmet Healthcare Services Group, issued his cautionary note at the same time the sector is preparing for the Aug. 17 PBJ system transition to the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services’s (CMS) secure cloud-based system – iQIES.

In a blog on the matter, Raven Jackson, director of regulatory and quality services, American Health Care Association, offered a number of steps to guide providers to next month’s transition.

She said providers are encouraged to begin registering and obtaining access to PBJ roles in iQIES as outlined in the previous CMS announcement Correction: iQIES PBJ Launch Announcement.

Providers and vendors should be aware of the following key system benefits, reporting updates, and available support resources, she said. 

These include:

Key Benefits of iQIES for PBJ 

• Single system access for PBJ submission and reporting 

• Access to iQIES anywhere within the United States 

• Tips and guidance within iQIES to assist with uploading PBJ files and accessing reports 

• Familiar submission process, with file uploads similar to QIES 

  
  

What Providers and Vendors Should Expect 

• After Aug. 14, at 11:59 p.m. ET, QIES will no longer accept PBJ submissions. 

• Beginning Aug. 17, PBJ submissions for Quarter 4 must be submitted through iQIES.  

• PBJ submissions for Quarter 4 will not be accepted in QIES or iQIES from July 1, through Aug. 16.  

  
  

QIES / iQIES Report Information 

• Beginning Aug. 17, users will be able to access and run PBJ reports in iQIES. 

• Ten years of PBJ data will be migrated into iQIES, allowing users to run reports for both QIES and iQIES submissions (except the Submitter Final Validation Report). 

• CMS has provided a list of PBJ reports available in iQIES, including corresponding CASPER and iQIES report names and any differences users should be aware of.  

• Following migration, PBJ reports in the CASPER application will be decommissioned, with two exceptions for a limited time: 

-       System-generated final validation reports for submissions completed in QIES 

-       User-requested PBJ Submitter Final Validation Report 

Jackson said for assistance with reports, users can reference the CMS iQIES Reports User Manual, iqies Reference & Manuals | QIES Technical Support Office.  

“Training materials, user guides, and technical documents will be posted on the QTSO website prior to the iQIES PBJ launch. Providers and vendors are encouraged to review these resources to support onboarding and ongoing system use,” she said. 

Comments or questions on this article? Contact Patrick Connole at pconnole@parkplacelivecom.