Announcement to HHAs on How to Authorize a Vendor
folder_openInformation for Home Health Agenciescalendar_todayPosted July 22, 2010

Some of the data files containing Home Health Care CAHPS (HHCAHPS) Survey data that some approved vendors recently tried to submit to the HHCAHPS Data Center were rejected because of the following reasons:

1. the home health agency (HHA) had not authorized the vendor to submit HHCAHPS Survey data on its behalf; or
2. the HHA had authorized the vendor to submit data on its behalf, but the start date entered on the online “Authorize a Vendor” form that the HHA completed was after the sample month entered on the data file that the vendor attempted to submit.

All HHAs participating in HHCAHPS must make sure that they have completed the online “Authorize a Vendor” form to authorize their survey vendor to submit HHCAHPS Survey data on their behalf. It is also critical that the start date that the HHA enters on form is correct. The start date entered on the vendor authorization form cannot be after the first day of the first sample month for which the survey vendor is submitting HHCAHPS Survey data on the HHA’s behalf.

To authorize a survey vendor, the HHA’s HHCAHPS Survey Administrator must first register for and receive user credentials to access the private links on the HHCAHPS Web site at the Registration Form. Once user credentials are issued by the HHCAHPS Coordination Team, the HHA’s HHCAHPS Survey Administrator must authorize the HHA’s HHCAHPS Survey vendor by carrying out the following steps:

• Go to the HHCAHPS website.
• From the Web site home page, log in to the private side of the Web site using the log-in credentials that were issued by the HHCAHPS Coordination Team.
• Go to the For HHA tab and click the Authorize a Vendor link.
• Follow the instructions that appear on the Authorize a Vendor page and shown below:
  • Select your survey vendor from the dropdown list.
  • Enter the Start Date for your survey vendor, which must be on or before the first day of the first sample month for which your vendor will conduct the survey for your agency. Please see examples below that illustrate the correct start date.
• Once you click on the Submit button, you have successfully authorized your HHCAHPS Survey vendor. The Web system will automatically send the HHCAHPS Survey Administrator a confirmation e-mail message indicating that this process has been completed.

The following three examples illustrate the start date that should be entered. Home health agencies should contact the HHCAHPS Coordination Team by e-mail at hhcahps@rti.org or by calling (866) 354-0985 if they have any questions or need help authorizing a survey vendor.

Example 1
Windstar Home Care entered into a contract with the TOP Survey Company on July 1, 2010, for TOP Survey Company to begin administering the HHCAHPS Survey with September 2010 as the first sample month. When completing the online vendor authorization form on the HHCAHPS project Web site, Windstar entered September 1, 2010, as the start date. This start date is correct because the TOP Survey Company will begin administering the HHCAHPS Survey starting with the September 2010 sample month. However, even if the date entered was July 1, 2010 (the date the HHA completed the authorization form), the HHCAHPS Data Center will accept data files from the TOP Survey Company because the start date entered is before the first sample month in which Windstar will begin its participation in HHCAHPS. Windstar did not enter an end date on the vendor authorization form because HHAs should only enter an end date when they are planning to switch to a new HHCAHPS Survey vendor.

Example 2
Sunshine Home Care signed a contract with the TOP Survey Company on February 15, 2010. Sunshine began its participation in the HHCAHPS Survey with March 2010 as the first sample month. When completing the online vendor authorization form, Sunshine entered March 1, 2010, as the start date. This date is correct because it is the first day of the sample month for which Sunshine began its participation in HHCAHPS. Sunshine did not enter an end date because HHAs should leave the end date blank unless they are planning to switch to a new HHCAHPS Survey vendor.

Example 3
When authorizing its HHCAHPS Survey vendor, the Best Home Care Agency entered July 15, 2010, as the start date on the online vendor authorization form. However, its vendor, the TOP Survey Company, began administering the survey for the Best Home Care Agency starting with the February 2010 sample month. The TOP Survey Company attempted to submit data it collected for the February sample month to the HHCAHPS Data Center on July 15, 2010. However, the HHCAHPS Data Center rejected the file because the start date that the Best Home Care Agency entered on the vendor authorization form was after the first sample month for which patients were sampled and surveyed. The TOP Survey Company quickly contacted the Best Home Care Agency about this issue. The Best Home Care Agency corrected the start date on the vendor authorization form (the agency entered February 1, 2010). The TOP Survey Company resubmitted the data file containing survey data for the February 2010 sample month later that same day, and the file was accepted.