Skin Cancer: Biopsy Reporting Time – Pathologist to Clinician
Percentage of biopsies with a diagnosis of cutaneous basal cell carcinoma (BCC) and squamous cell carcinoma (SCC), or melanoma (including in situ disease) in which the pathologist communicates results to the clinician within 7 days from the time when the tissue specimen was received by the pathologist.
Last updated: January 15, 2026
🧮MIPS Score Simulator
Estimate only — actual CMS scoring may vary based on reporting method, data completeness, and annual rule updates.
📖Clinical Rationale
Effective communication through the biopsy report between pathologist and referring physician is essential as delay may directly affect patient care. Furthermore, lack of timely delivery of results can increase the cost of medical care, error and the anxiety the patient experiences in waiting for results. This measure seeks to ensure timely communication and effective treatment for the patient.
📝Clinical Recommendations
“[Pathology] reports should be issued in a timely manner. Failure to report results promptly may delay patient care (thus uselessly adding to the cost of medical care), [and] lead to error and confusion…”
📋Implementation Notes
This measure contains one strata defined by a single submission criteria. This measure produces a single performance rate. For the purposes of MIPS implementation, this procedure measure is submitted each time a procedure is performed during the performance period. To be eligible for this measure, the denominator must be met during the measurement period of 01/01/2026 to 12/24/2026.
This is to provide sufficient time for the pathology results to be received by the biopsying clinician and for the performance of the numerator to be met within the performance period.
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