ACOsAdvanced Alternative Payment ModelsAPP ReportingCMS RulesMerit-Based Incentive Payment System (MIPS)MIPS Value Pathways
July 16, 2024

CMS Presses for Accountable Care, Better Quality Measurement for Physicians and ACOs in New Proposed Rule

July brings us baseball, fireworks, and CMS’s Proposed Rules. In 2,248 pages of proposals, CMS has outlined its plans for MIPS, ACOs, and other Advanced Alternate Payment Models, and how they will transition from fee-for-service into a value-based care arrangement through the Quality Payment Program (QPP). We already know from the 2024 Final Rule that CMS plans to phase out Traditional MIPS in favor of MIPS Value Pathways (MVPs), and is committed to having all Traditional Medicare beneficiaries in an accountable care relationship by 2030. These Proposals continue to build on that framework, but it wouldn’t be a July ballgame…
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ACOsAPP ReportingCMS RulesMedicareValue-Based Health Care
December 12, 2023

How Your ACO Can Optimize APP Reporting Using Medicare CQMs

ACOs just gained a reprieve from implementing all-patient APP quality reporting in 2024. A provision in CMS’s Physician Fee Schedule Final Rule, which goes into effect on January 1, 2024, enables ACOs to report on Medicare patients only, based on CMS provision of eligible patient lists for three APP measures. If your ACO decides to delay aggregation of practice data for now, you need to consider how to optimize APP Reporting of Medicare CQMs. Choose a qualified registry for APP Reporting that can reduce your workload for reporting Medicare CQM Measures. Using CMS’s list of patients eligible for measures will…
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The 2024 CMS PFS Final Rule: Post-PHE, Value-Based Care Returns to the Forefront, Roji Health Intelligence, Dave Halpert
ACOsCMS RulesData AggregationMIPS Value PathwaysValue-Based Health Care
November 9, 2023

The 2024 CMS PFS Final Rule: Post-PHE, Value-Based Care Returns to the Forefront

The 2024 Physician Fee Schedule Final Rule—all 2,709 pages worth—was released on November 3, and the significance of the “Post-COVID” rule cannot be understated. With the Public Health Emergency expiring earlier this year, these finalized policies are intended to get the proverbial train back on its tracks, following the massive derailment in March 2020. Although many policies were finalized as proposed, there are plenty of exceptions and caveats, and providers and practices need to be keenly aware of the details. CMS is using this rule to advance its value-based care goals through data aggregation and attention to health equity. Those…
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APM Performance PathwayAPP ReportingCMS RulesData Best PracticesMIPS Value PathwaysValue-Based Health Care
July 19, 2023

The 2024 CMS PFS Proposed Rule: 7 Attempts to Balance Participation Goals with Value

Reading between the many lines in the 1,920-page 2024 Medicare Physician Fee Schedule (PFS) Proposed Rule, one thing is clear: CMS is still struggling to move providers into Advanced Alternate Payment Models (APMs) and keep existing ACOs moving forward on the path to value-based payments. The APP Reporting tug-of-war between CMS and ACOs results in a slight concession for providers worried about difficulty and cost of all-patient APP Reporting. We’ve seen this before, of course. Remember the delay in sunsetting the Web Interface for ACOs in the 2022 Rule and the retreat from mandatory transition to risk in the 2023…
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ACO ReportingAPP ReportingCMS RulesValue-Based Health Care
January 5, 2023

Prepare Your ACO for APP Reporting with Our Ultimate Guide

No way out. That's the message of the CMS 2023 Final Payment Rule regarding APP quality reporting for ACOs. ACOs hoping for a reprieve to avoid all-patient quality reporting did not get it. APP Reporting will go forward by 2025, and ACOs must aggregate the patient data from provider systems to enable it. CMS has made it clear that accountable health care requires all-patient data to support both quality and equity in patient health care. You will need to act quickly. It takes experience, technology, and time to create the framework for a multi-practice database. You will need to become…
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ACOsCMS RulesCorporate Health CareEpisodes of CareFuture of Health CareValue-Based Health Care
December 13, 2022

5 Key Health Care Trends to Watch for in 2023

After an intense few years in health care, will 2023 deliver more punches? While 2022 was dubbed a COVID “recovery” year, as patient volume rebounded, health care staffing shortages festered. Burnout prompted physicians to retire, sell practices to corporate owners, or leave traditional health care for other employment. Simply put, 2022 was short on recovery and stability. Even still, 2022 fostered important new trends and discoveries. Despite inflation and recession fears, corporate health care continued its growth undaunted, with new startups and equity-backed practice expansion. Value-Based Care spurred corporate territorial reach into legacy health care preserves. Optum, ACO enablers like…
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ACOsCMS RulesFuture of Health CareMIPS Value Pathways
November 7, 2022

2023 PFS Final Rule: 8 Key Strategies that Boost New ACOs and Increase Health Care Access

It’s here. The 2023 CMS Physician Fee Schedule Final Rule has been released, and in a mere 3,304 pages, CMS has largely finalized its proposals from over the summer. To save you from pouring through all the minutiae, here’s what you need to know. Overall, in this Final Rule, CMS has codified principles to fulfill the goals outlined in the Innovation Center’s Strategic Refresh of October 2021. Most notably, CMS has committed to having all Traditional Medicare beneficiaries in an accountable care program by 2030, and to prioritize health equity. To make this happen, CMS needs to shake up the…
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