Court ruling

Fifth Circuit rules on QPA calculation provisions

Source: STAT · August 12, 2026

STAT reports that the Fifth Circuit ruled in favor of providers on two disputed parts of the federal methodology for calculating the qualifying payment amount, or QPA, in Texas Medical Association litigation.

Reported details

According to the report, the court rejected inclusion of unnegotiated “ghost rates” and required inclusion of bonus and incentive payments. It rejected an air-ambulance argument that a one-time transport price should enter the calculation. The QPA represents contracted payment rates and is used in the federal arbitration process.