Depression Response at Twelve Months, Progress Towards Remission

The goal of major depressive disorder (MDD) treatment should be to achieve remission, reduce relapse and recurrence, and return to previous level of occupational and psychosocial function. The performance measure aims to assess a patient’s progress toward remission by achieving a response within the time interval. The 12-month time frame is not based on clinical evidence but is more feasible for achieving a response than a 6-month time frame. It is important to consider the severity of MDD, as some interventions will take longer to take effect in populations with more resistant MDD. The index period for the denominator is well-defined; it measures patients who have an index visit within the set calendar period (e.g., dates between November 1 and October 31) and allows enough time to pass to accommodate the timeframe for assessment (+/- 60 days of the index date of service). The time frame helps with documenting the improvement. The collection burden for this performance measure is moderate and physician control is low.