Updated Versions of Protocols and Guidelines Manual, Website User and Data Submission Manual, and OAS CAHPS Survey Materials have been Posted
folder_openSurvey Materialscalendar_todayPosted November 13, 2026

Version 11.0 of the OAS CAHPS Protocols and Guidelines Manual and Version 10.0 of the OAS CAHPS Website User and Data Submission Manual have been updated and posted on the OAS CAHPS website. The OAS CAHPS Protocols and Guidelines Manual, Version 11.0 is available on the Survey Materials page. The OAS CAHPS Website User and Data Submission Manual, Version 10.0 is available on the Data Submission Resources page.

Several OAS CAHPS Survey materials have been updated, including the mail questionnaires, web surveys, and OMB Disclosure Notices (all with a new OMB expiration date), and the Web Survey Reminder Letter (added sentence). Email unsubscribe statements in all languages have been added to the Survey Materials page. The General Guidelines for Telephone Interviewers, formerly Appendix I of the OAS CAHPS Protocols & Guidelines Manual , is now a standalone document on the Survey Materials page, and the XML File Layouts have moved to the Data Submission Resources page.

The most notable difference between Version 10.0 and Version 11.0 of the OAS CAHPS Protocols and Guidelines Manual is the streamlined appendices, which were reduced from 18 to five. Core operational forms and reference materials were kept, while survey materials available on the OAS CAHPS website (e.g., OAS CAHPS Survey materials in all languages, XML file layouts) were removed and replaced with embedded links to the website.

The following is a summary of additional differences between Version 10.0 and Version 11.0 of the OAS CAHPS Protocols and Guidelines Manual.

Throughout: Removed references to Preview Reports on the OAS CAHPS website; they are now posted on the Hospital Quality Reporting (HQR) secure portal (https://hqr.cms.gov/). Replaced the requirement to submit initial Quality Assurance Plans 6 weeks after a vendor's first data submission; vendor applicants must now submit a QAP and receive Interim Approval before accepting clients and beginning data collection (Ch. III, Ch. IX, Appendix A). Added a footnote to the telephone-only, mail with telephone follow-up, and web with telephone follow-up administration schedules clarifying that initial calls may begin soon after the start date if not all sample patient records can be called on the first day of data collection (Ch. VI, Ch. VII, Ch. IX).

Chapter II: Updated facility-level exclusions for HOPDs. Indian Health Service (IHS) hospitals can now choose to participate on a voluntary basis and Prospective Payment Systems (PPS) Cancer-exempt hospitals are not eligible for OAS CAHPS. Revised information about the Propose and Final Rule posted on the Federal Register to reference the CY2022 Final Rule, which stated the requirements for participation linked to reimbursement to HOPDs or ASCs. No changes to participation linked to reimbursement have been made since the CY2022 Final Rule.

Chapter III: Added a recommendation that facilities do not word supplemental questions in ways that solicit feedback on specific staff or departments. Added new restrictions on the use of Super Intelligence (SI), also known as Artificial Intelligence (AI), in OAS CAHPS Survey administration. Vendors cannot use SI to respond to toll-free customer support calls or emails sent to the vendor's inbox, except to acknowledge receipt of an email. Vendors must conduct live interviews; SI technology and simulated or generated voice systems are prohibited in telephone interviewing. SI is also prohibited for interviewer monitoring, including transcribing or translating live or recorded interviews.

Chapter IV: Added guidance on obtaining and confirming viable email addresses. Clarified guidelines for when greater than 3% of missing procedural codes can be provided at a later date, but not before one month + 14 days after the sample month. Added a sentence to clarify that Simple Random Sampling can be used when a facility would like multiple components (strata) to be analyzed as a whole, without tracking results at a lower level.

Chapters VIII and IX: Added a recommendation that web-mode vendors do not use the Sample Patient ID as the web survey access code. Added a requirement that vendors using the optional web-mode unsubscribe statement use the approved language translations available on the OAS CAHPS website.

Chapter XIII: Added a new table (Table 12.1) explaining how the lag time date is calculated based on the mode of survey administration.

Chapter XVI: Confirmed that both HOPD and ASC data is posted on the Provider Data Catalog (PDC) website. For HOPDs, reporting on Care Compare started in 2025. For ASCs, reporting on Care Compare is not yet scheduled, but is expected to begin at some point in the future.

If you have questions, you can contact the OAS CAHPS Survey Coordination Team via e-mail at oascahps@rti.org or call 1-866-590-7468.