Expanded HHVBP Model: Preliminary April 2026 IPRs Available in iQIES
The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) has published the Preliminary April 2026 Interim Performance Reports (IPRs) for the expanded Home Health Value-Based Purchasing (HHVBP) Model in iQIES. These quarterly reports give home health agencies visibility into cohort assignment, measure performance and interim Total Performance Score (TPS), helping agencies track performance relative to peers throughout the model year.
As always, Simple continues to monitor regulatory updates like these to help home health agencies stay informed and prepared.
What the April 2026 IPRs Include
The April 2026 IPRs provide agencies with updated performance information based on measure-specific reporting periods, including OASIS-based, claims-based and HHCAHPS survey-based measures.
Agencies may receive an April 2026 IPR if they were Medicare-certified prior to January 1, 2024, and meet the minimum data threshold for at least one quality measure during the applicable reporting period.
For the April 2026 IPR, the reporting periods include:
- OASIS-based measures: January 1, 2025 – December 31, 2025
- Claims-based measures:
- Discharge to Community-Post Acute Care (DTC-PAC): October 1, 2023 – September 30, 2025
- Potentially Preventable Hospitalization (PPH): October 1, 2024 – September 30, 2025
- HHCAHPS survey-based measures: October 1, 2024 – September 30, 2025
CMS also notes that HHCAHPS survey-based measures are not included in TPS calculations for agencies in the smaller-volume cohort.
Looking Ahead to the CY 2026 Measure Set
CMS is also preparing agencies for changes to the expanded HHVBP Model measure set beginning in calendar year 2026.
The October 2026 IPRs will be the first reports to generate improvement, achievement and care points based on the CY 2026 applicable measure set. To support that transition, CMS has started including preview information in IPRs, including achievement thresholds, benchmarks and agency-specific improvement thresholds tied to the CY 2026 measure set.
This preview gives agencies an opportunity to better understand how future performance will be evaluated before the updated measure set is fully reflected in IPR scoring.
Risk Adjustment Processing Correction
CMS also identified and corrected a risk adjustment processing issue affecting certain OASIS-based measure calculations.
Although the correct 2025 risk adjustment values had been published, they were not actually used in iQIES for home health episodes with Start of Care (SOC) or Resumption of Care (ROC) completion dates on or after January 1, 2025. Instead, those measures were calculated using the 2024 risk adjustment models.
This affected portions of the July 2025, October 2025 and January 2026 IPRs. CMS corrected the issue in early April 2026, and the updated calculations are reflected beginning with the April 2026 IPRs.
CMS indicated that its impact analysis found small changes in agency-level OASIS-based measure scores and very small changes to relative measure performance rankings for agencies with enough eligible episodes to generate measure values.
Accessing April 2026 IPRs
IPRs are available in iQIES through the “HHA Provider Preview Reports” folder. Reports are organized by the CMS Certification Number (CCN) assigned to each home health agency.
Agencies with multiple CCNs should have a separate report available for each CCN. Only authorized iQIES users can access expanded HHVBP Model reports, and IPRs are not publicly available.
To access reports, agencies should log into iQIES, select “My Reports,” open the “HHA Provider Preview Reports” folder and select the applicable HHVBP report file.
Recalculation Requests Due May 15, 2026
Preliminary IPRs provide agencies with an opportunity to submit a recalculation request if they believe there is evidence of a discrepancy in the calculation of applicable measures or interim performance scores.
For the April 2026 IPR, recalculation requests must be submitted by May 15, 2026. Approved recalculation requests will be reflected in the Final IPR.
CMS notes that recalculation requests do not apply to errors in data submission. Requests should include agency identifying information, the basis for the recalculation request, contact information and any supporting documentation that does not contain PHI or PII.
What This Means for Your Agency
The April 2026 IPRs provide an important opportunity for home health agencies to review current HHVBP performance, understand how they compare within their cohort and prepare for upcoming changes to the CY 2026 measure set.
Agencies should:
- Review April 2026 IPR results in iQIES
- Compare reported performance against internal tracking and vendor reports
- Confirm whether any recalculation request may be needed before May 15, 2026
- Review preview data tied to the CY 2026 applicable measure set
- Monitor how corrected risk adjustment processing may affect OASIS-based measure results
While CMS indicated that the risk adjustment correction resulted in only small overall changes, agencies should still review their reports carefully and ensure internal performance monitoring aligns with the latest available data.
Simple helps agencies simplify key iQIES workflows, including submission processes and access to important iQIES reports. By making it easier to manage reporting requirements and retrieve the data agencies need, Simple supports more efficient oversight of performance, compliance and quality reporting.
Simple will continue tracking expanded HHVBP Model updates and sharing insights to help agencies better understand performance, reporting expectations and upcoming changes.