The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) finalized updates to the Gastroenterology Care MVP for the 2026 performance year.
Although MVP reporting is currently voluntary, CMS has expressed the intention of sunsetting traditional MIPS and transitioning to MVPs entirely in the future. In the 2025 MIPS proposed rule, CMS requested feedback on the possibility of making MVPs mandatory as early as 2029.
Anatomy IT will continue to advocate for MVPs to be optional and for improvements to this MVP to make it possible for all gastroenterologists to be successful.
In this blog, we’ll break down what MVPs are, how to report them, and what changes were finalized in the 2026 Gastroenterology Care MVP.
What is a MIPS Value Pathway (MVP)?
CMS introduced MVPs as an alternative reporting option to traditional MIPS in 2023. According to CMS, MVPs aim to simplify MIPS, reduce reporting burden, and help patients make more informed decisions when choosing their clinicians.
Each MVP has its own specific set of quality measures, improvement activities (IAs), and cost measures, and you are limited to those measures and activities when reporting the MVP. The Promoting Interoperability (PI) category is included as part of a “foundational layer,” meaning that PI requirements are the same for every MVP. Also included in the foundational layer is a population health measure, which contributes to your overall Quality score.
Can I Report an MVP Through a Registry?
Since 2023, Qualified Registries (QRs) and Qualified Clinical Data Registries (QCDRs), such as the American College of Gastroenterology and American Society for Gastrointestinal Endoscopy’s GIQuIC QCDR, have been required to support all measures in the Quality, IA, and PI categories of the MVPs relevant to their clinicians. They are not required to support the Cost category, Population Health measures, QCDR measures, or the CAHPS for MIPS Survey.
How Are MVPs Different from Traditional MIPS?
The table below highlights the differences by category between reporting traditional MIPS versus reporting an MVP.
If you choose to report both traditional MIPS and an MVP, CMS will assign you the higher of the two scores.
How Do I Report an MVP?
To report an MVP for the 2026 performance year, you must register between April 1, 2026, and November 30, 2026, at 8 pm ET. Registration is available through your QPP account.
At the time of registration, you must include the following information:
- The MVP you are choosing to report,
- Any administrative claims measures you would like to be included as 1 of your 4 required Quality measures,
- Whether you are planning to count the CAHPS for MIPS Survey measure towards 1 of the 4 required Quality measures, and
- Your participation level (group, subgroup, individual, APM).
If you are reporting at the group level, you will have the chance to attest to being a single-specialty group or a small multi-specialty group (15 or fewer clinicians).
- If you report at the group level and are part of a large multi-specialty group (more than 15 clinicians), you are required to report at the subgroup level in 2026.
If you are an Anatomy IT client, we will discuss whether to report an MVP during your kickoff call.
What Are the 2026 Changes to the MVP for Gastroenterology?
CMS finalized the following changes to the 2026 Gastroenterology Care MVP:
- Added 1 quality measure:
516: Hepatitis C Virus (HCV): Sustained Virological Response (SVR) (first year in MIPS; 7-pt floor)
- 185: Colonoscopy Interval for Patients with a History of Adenomatous Polyps – Avoidance of Inappropriate Use *
- 487: Screening for Social Drivers of Health *
- AHE_9: Implement Food Insecurity and Nutrition Risk Identification and Treatment Protocols*
- PM_26: Vaccine Achievement for Practice Staff: COVID-19, Influenza, & Hepatitis B*
- Lower Gastrointestinal Hemorrhage (evaluated at group level only)
*These measures were also removed from traditional MIPS.
To see all the measures and activities included in the Gastroenterology Care MVP, click on the category names below.
Gastroenterology Care Measures (Specific to This MVP)
Gastroenterology Care MVP Quality Measures
- 113: Colorectal Cancer Screening
- 130: Documentation of Current Medications in the Medical Record (high priority)
- 226: Preventive Care and Screening: Tobacco Use: Screening and Cessation Intervention
- 275: Inflammatory Bowel Disease (IBD): Assessment of Hepatitis B Virus (HBV) Status Before Initiating Anti-TNF (Tumor Necrosis Factor) Therapy
- 320: Appropriate Follow-Up Interval for Normal Colonoscopy in Average Risk Patients (high priority)
- 374: Closing the Referral Loop: Receipt of Specialist Report (high priority)
- 400: One-Time Screening for Hepatitis C Virus (HCV) and Treatment Initiation
- 401: Hepatitis C: Screening for Hepatocellular Carcinoma (HCC) in Patients with Cirrhosis
- 503: Gains in Patient Activation Measure (PAM®) Scores at 12 Months (outcome)
- 516: Hepatitis C Virus (HCV): Sustained Virological Response (SVR) (outcome)
- GIQIC23: Appropriate Follow-Up Interval Based on Pathology Findings in Screening Colonoscopy (high priority)
- GIQIC26: Screening Colonoscopy Adenoma Detection Rate (outcome)
- NHCR4: Repeat Screening or Surveillance Colonoscopy Recommended Within One Year Due to Inadequate Bowel Preparation (high priority)
- BE_4: Engagement of Patients Through Implementation of Improvements in Patient Portal
- BE_26: Promote Use of Patient-Reported Outcome Tools
- CC_7: Regular Training in Care Coordination
- CC_9: Implementation of Practices/Processes for Developing Regular Individual Care Plans
- CC_10: Care Transition Documentation Practice Improvements
- CC_13: Practice Improvements to Align with OpenNotes Principles
- EPA_8: Provide Education Opportunities for New Clinicians
- PCMH: Electronic Submission of Patient-Centered Medical Home Accreditation
- MVP: Practice-Wide Quality Improvement in MIPS Value Pathways
- Lower Gastrointestinal Hemorrhage
20-episode case minimum; evaluated at group level only
- Screening/Surveillance Colonoscopy
10-episode case minimum
- Total Per Capita Cost (TPCC)
20-episode case minimum
Foundational Layer (Applies to All MVPs)
- 479: Hospital-Wide, 30-Day, All-Cause Unplanned Readmission (HWR) Rate for the Merit-Based Incentive Payment Systems (MIPS) Groups
- 484: Clinician and Clinician Group Risk-standardized Hospital Admission Rates for Patients with Multiple Chronic Conditions
All of the following attestations and measures are required (no exclusions):
- Use of CEHRT
- Actions to Limit or Restrict Interoperability of CEHRT
- ASTP/ONC Direct Review
- High Priority SAFER Guides Assessment
- Security Risk Analysis
- Provide Patients Electronic Access to Their Health Information
All of the following measures are required (unless claiming an exclusion):
- e-Prescribing
- Query of Prescription Drug Monitoring Program (PDMP)
- Immunization Registry Reporting
- Electronic Case Reporting
One of the following options is required:
- Option 1: Support Electronic Referral Loops by Sending Health Information + Support Electronic Referral Loops by Receiving and Reconciling Health Information
Exclusions are available for both measures in this option.
You can optionally report on one of the following measures for up to 5 bonus points in the PI category:
- Syndromic Surveillance Reporting
- Clinical Data Registry Reporting
- Public Health Registry Reporting
- Public Health Reporting Using TEFCA
Is Reporting the MVP for Gastroenterology Care in 2026 Worth It?
Yes. CMS is considering making MVP reporting mandatory starting in 2029. That means there are only a few MIPS performance years left to find flaws, gather data, and recommend improvements before MVPs become the only way in which you can participate in MIPS and avoid a penalty. By reporting this MVP, you will:
- Gain invaluable experience to prepare you for mandatory MVP reporting,
- Not negatively impact your MIPS payment adjustment as long as you also report traditional MIPS (even if you score poorly in the MVP), and
- Be able to provide real-world feedback to CMS to help them improve the MVP available to you before MVP reporting becomes mandatory. You can communicate with us to describe your experience with the MVP or you can tell CMS directly by commenting on the 2027 Medicare Physician Fee Schedule Proposed Rule this summer or by following the steps outlined here by CMS.
Next Steps
- Share this information with your colleagues.
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- If you are an Anatomy IT client, contact your MIPS Expert if you have any questions.
- If you are not an Anatomy IT client, contact us to learn more about our MIPS Success Plan and to reap the rewards of our combined decades of experience.
If you have any questions on this, let us know!
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Written By: **Sarrah Hakim, MHSA
About the Author: Sarrah is the Director of Health Policy at Anatomy IT.