Follow This Closely: Why Follow-Up Is the Weakest Link in Cardiac Care Measures

From a CMS perspective, incomplete follow-up is indistinguishable from incomplete care. Follow-up failures create gaps in the narrative of care. If a measure indicates successful management of a cardiac condition, there must be documented follow-up to support that claim. The practices that succeed in MIPS are not necessarily doing more, they are doing what they already do with greater precision, structure, and accountability. Because in cardiac measures, the weakest link is not diagnosis or treatment. It is whether you can prove that the care continued.