Delayed Publication of Scientific Registry for Transplant Recipients (SRTR) Program Specific Reports (PSR) and Implications for Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) Transplant Program Oversight

• Delay in Outcomes Information –The release of the January 2013 SRTR PSRs has been delayed while CMS works with the Social Security Administration (SSA) and the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) to address changes to the availability of the Social Security Master Death File (SSMDF) data, which is used in calculating the PSR reports. Medicare regulations require that CMS use the most recent SRTR report for determining compliance with Medicare outcome requirements. As such, the July 2012 SRTR PSRs will be used to determine compliance until further notice.
• Programs with Condition-level deficiencies may apply for mitigating factors (MF) to avoid termination - Transplant programs that were not in compliance according to the July 2012 SRTR PSRs, may apply for consideration of MF prior to their prospective Medicare termination date. As part of the MF process, we examine the most recent data available to us and the transplant program, including data that may not yet be published in the PSRs.