Center for the Study of Services Logo (CSS)
My Account
Loading...
© Copyright 2025 Center for the Study of ServicesCSS Research
Terms of UsePrivacy Policy
Services

Medicare Health Outcomes Survey (HOS)

The goal of the Medicare HOS is to gather valid, reliable, and clinically meaningful health status data from the Medicare Advantage (MA) program to use in quality improvement activities, pay for performance, program oversight, public reporting, and to improve health. CSS has been approved for Medicare HOS since 2012, and in 2022 we were given approval to conduct the HOS-M survey as well. The protocol is specified by CMS, with the only customization option being the language of survey administration.

Additional Details and Options

Modes of Data Collection Available
Mail, Telephone, and Internet
Populations
Adult & Child Medicaid, Medicare, Commercial
Survey Instrument
Medicare HOS standard survey provided by CMS and includes the Veterans RAND 12-Item health survey, questions about HEDIS Effectiveness of Care Measures, and additional health questions
Languages Available
English, Spanish, Chinese
Fielding Time
Fielding takes place annually from April - July
Features of Our Reports
Features of Our Reports CMS provides specific guidance limiting the content of reports - we provide ongoing updates about response rates and dispositions as allowed by CMS

Options to Maximize Your Investment

Many plans choose to engage in Off-cycle or Mock Health Outcomes Surveys. Keep in mind the following:

  • An offcycle survey gives plans an option for member-level data and more analysis of the survey responses
  • Plans must get permission to use the CMS/NCQA survey instrument prior to implementing an off-cycle survey
  • CMS requests that plans allow for a blackout period for any unofficial survey initiatives

Staging: Want to discuss your needs with our team?

Our team is standing by to help you measure, report, and improve the experiences that your healthcare patients receive.

Our research team includes experts with an average of more than 20 years of experience in the fields of consumer issues, healthcare performance measurement, survey research, analysis, and IT solutions.

Talk with an expert