About this Course

Digital HEDIS 201: Defining Digital HEDIS Measures 

Healthcare quality measurement is rapidly evolving and HEDIS is at the center of that transformation. Digital Measure Fundamentals is a foundational, self-guided Digital HEDIS ‑course designed to help learners confidently understand what Digital HEDIS is, why the industry is moving in this direction and what it means for today’s quality measurement workflows.

This foundational HEDIS training provides clear, practical exploration of how traditional, narrative HEDIS Volume 2 specifications are transitioning to machine-readable digital quality measures (dQMs) expressed using standards such as FHIR(R) and Clinical Quality Language (CQL). Learners will gain a clear, practical understanding of how digital measures are built, executed, and used without requiring development or technical expertise.

This course demystifies the shift to digital HEDIS measures, explaining how digital quality measures are designed, executed, and used across reporting and quality improvement. Through plain-language explanations, real-world examples, and visual walkthroughs, learners gain a solid conceptual foundation in:

•    How Digital HEDIS measures differ from traditional narrative HEDIS specifications.
•    What digital quality measures (dQMs) are and how they work.
•    The role of FHIR and CQL in enabling consistent, automated measure execution.
•    How digital measures support reporting, analytics, and performance improvement.
The course also places Digital HEDIS within the broader digital quality ecosystem, including alignment with CMS digital quality initiatives, eCQMs, and Electronic Clinical Data Systems (ECDS) reporting

What You Will Learn

By the end of this Digital HEDIS course, learners will be able to: Explain the difference between traditional HEDIS® Volume 2 measures and Digital HEDIS measures, including how narrative specifications compare to machine-readable  digital quality measures (dQMs).

•    Understand why the industry is transitioning to Digital HEDIS, including alignment with CMS, national digital quality initiatives and the broader digital quality ecosystem.
•    Describe what digital quality measures are and how they work, including key concepts such as dQMs, eCQMs, and ECDS reporting—and how they differ.
•    Identify the role of standardized data in digital measurement, including common clinical and administrative data sources and the benefits of structured, interoperable data.
•    Gain a foundational understanding of FHIR and Clinical Quality Language (CQL) and how these standards enable consistent, automated measure execution.
•    Recognize how digital measures are executed and produce results, from data input and logic execution to measure outputs used for reporting, analytics and quality improvement.
•    Understand what is changing—and what is not—across HEDIS workflows, including audit, certification, reporting and performance results.
•    Learn how organizations can begin preparing for Digital HEDIS today, including key considerations for data readiness, measure execution strategies and downstream workflows.
•    Develop a shared vocabulary and conceptual foundation to support cross-functional conversations among quality, business, clinical and  technical teams. 

By the end of the course, learners will have a shared vocabulary, a solid conceptual foundation and a clear understanding of how Digital HEDIS supports greater automation, consistency, scalability and burden reduction—while preserving the integrity and intent of HEDIS measurement.

HEDIS® is a registered trademark of the National Committee for Quality Assurance (NCQA).

Who Should Attend

This course is designed for both newcomers and experienced HEDIS professionals, including: 

•    Quality, clinical and business leaders seeking a high-level understanding of Digital HEDIS.
•    Health plans, vendors, auditors and delivery systems preparing for digital measurement.
•    Technical and nontechnical professionals who support HEDIS reporting and quality improvement.

Whether you are beginning your digital quality journey or need a clear, authoritative overview to align teams and stakeholders, Defining Digital HEDIS provides clear, authoritative overview of digital HEDIS measurement.

Continuing Education

This live course grants 1.0 Continuing Education Unit (CEU) points for PCMH Certified Content Experts.

This is a non-accredited activity.

* Please note – You must attend the entire program to be eligible for total number of contact hours.

Faculty

Jenna Barry, MPH

Jenna Barry is an Assistant Director in the Measure Data & Operations department at the National Committee for Quality Assurance (NCQA). In this role, she leads and oversees the end-to-end publication production process for key HEDIS® products, including the HEDIS Volume 2 publication and the HEDIS Long-Term Services and Supports (LTSS) publication. Her responsibilities include coordinating cross-functional inputs, managing timelines and quality controls, and ensuring the accuracy, clarity, and consistency of technical content.  Ms. Barry also oversees the development of the annual HEDIS Trending Memo, supporting the analysis and communication of measure trends across reporting years. Through this work, she plays a central role in maintaining the integrity and usability of HEDIS technical guidance relied upon by health plans, vendors, and other stakeholders.

Ms. Barry has worked at NCQA for 13 years, during which time she has developed extensive expertise in measure specifications, data processes, and publication development. Her experience spans multiple phases of the HEDIS lifecycle, with a focus on operational precision and continuous process improvement.  Ms. Barry holds a Master of Public Health from the Boston University School of Public Health.

Allison Lance

Allison Lance, Senior Program Manager in Customer Education brings over 20 years of experience across the health care ecosystem, from payers to health IT to care delivery. Her expertise ranges from market strategy and population health to quality improvement and interoperability. Prior to her role at NCQA, she worked in market intelligence at one of the world’s leading Electronic Health Record (EHR) platforms and has experience from several health plans. During her time at NCQA, she built the Digital Hub and Community, which is a dynamic coalition of health quality measurement professionals, as well as leads development of the organization’s strategic plan for digital advancement. These resources help provide visibility to the roadmap for digitalizing health quality measures to be in alignment with CMS and Interoperability Standards. 

Allison holds a Master's in health care administration (MHA) from the University of Maryland and a bachelor's in human resources management from Missouri State University.

Taylor Musser

Taylor leads and advises teams on several products at NCQA, including the HEDIS Compliance Audit methodology, the Data Aggregator Validation program, and the HEDIS performance measurement publications. Ms. Musser brings over a decade of experience in health care quality, previously serving as an Associate Principal at Avalere Health, where she interpreted regulatory changes to quality reporting programs. She also held roles at MedStar Health and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, where she leveraged data for performance evaluation and public health surveillance.

Taylor is familiar with NCQA, having previously led HEDIS measure development and rejoined the organization to support the implementation of digital quality measures. She received an MPH in epidemiology from Emory University and holds a BS in microbiology from the University of Minnesota.

Suzanne Wallen

Suzanne Wallen is the Assistant Vice President of Measure and Data Operations at the National Committee for Quality Assurance (NCQA), a role that places her at the forefront of NCQA’s efforts to ensure the integrity and reliability of healthcare quality measures. She is responsible for NCQA’s Measure CertificationTM programs, frontline support for HEDIS® policy interpretation questions and operations for NCQA’s digital content. Suzanne has 20 years of experience working with NCQA programs. She has also supported the HEDIS Compliance AuditTM program, the development of NCQA’s Data Aggregator Validation program and NCQA’s Data Collection Department.

Suzanne completed her undergraduate education in Health Services Administration at James Madison University. She holds a Master of Health Administration, Executive Management degree from George Mason University.

Continuing Education

This course grants 1.0 Continuing Education Unit (CEU) points for PCMH Certified Content Experts.
This is a non AMA PRA Category 1 Credit^TM, ANA CNE, ACPE activity.

Disclosure of Relevant Financial Relationships

The National Committee for Quality Assurance (NCQA) endorses the Standards of the Accreditation Council for Continuing Medical Education which specify that sponsors of continuing medical education activities and presenters at and planners for these activities disclose any relevant financial relationships either party might have with commercial companies whose products or services are discussed in educational presentations.

For sponsors, relevant financial relationships include large research grants, institutional agreements for joint initiatives, substantial gifts, or other relationships that benefit the institution.  For presenters or planning committee members, relevant financial relationships include the receipt of research grants from a commercial company, consultancies, honoraria, travel, or other benefits, or having a self-managed equity interest in a company; or having an immediate family member or partner with such a relationship.

Disclosure of a relationship is not intended to suggest or condone bias in any presentation but is made to provide participants with information that might be of potential importance to their evaluation of a presentation.

Relevant financial relationships exist with the following companies/organizations:

Faculty:

Jenna Berry: None
Allison Lance:  None
Taylor Musser: None
Suzanne Wallen: None

Additional Planning Committee Members:
Allison Lance: None
Molly Manuse: