What you need to know about HCC models

Demographics and diagnoses

Risk adjusted diagnosis coding is a model used to predict future healthcare costs based on demographics and diagnoses. The model takes into account the age and gender of the population, whether they’re living at home or in an institution, if they are dually eligible for Medicare and Medicaid, and if they are being treated for end stage renal disease. The disease burden of the population of patients being served is measured by the diagnosis codes that are submitted to the payer on the hospital and professional claim forms.

Hierarchical condition categories (HCCs)

CMS developed HCCs to pay Medicare Advantage Organizations (MAOs) differentially based on disease burden and demographics. Some payers use proprietary risk adjustment models, but HCCs are well known. About 9,000 ICD-10 codes are grouped into categories and these categories are assigned a risk factor. There is weighting or hierarchy, which assigns higher values to more serious conditions. Two conditions in the same category are counted only once. Using the HCC model, conditions must be reported annually to be credited to that patient.

CMS uses two models. The first, CMS-HCC, is the model used to pay MAOs. The second model was developed after the passage of the Affordable Care Act to pay health insurers in the ACA marketplace. This second model includes categories for infants, children, and all age adults, and includes obstetrical diagnosis codes for high-risk OB care.

How to use this information in practice

Physicians and other providers don’t need to understand all the details of HCCs but do need to understand these core principles: Annually, report on a claim form all serious acute and chronic conditions that are managed that affect treatment. Be specific when reporting these conditions. In particular, when there is a manifestation or complication for the condition, such as with bleeding or with an ulcer. Follow this ICD-10 guidance: “Code all documented conditions, which coexist at the time of the visit that require or affect patient care or treatment.”

The following is a thumbnail guide to help you navigate CMS-HCC and HHS-HCC.