MedPAC Report Offers Strong Endorsement of Hospital-Based ACOs

Garrett SchmittNo Comments, ,

Medicare ACOs are designed to slow growth in Medicare spending and improve the quality of care delivery. Since the first ACOs were established in 2012, there has been a persistent question of whether the population health management and wellness measures employed by ACOs will result in fewer inpatient stays and lower hospital revenue. Can ACO participation be worth the financial risk for inpatient hospitals?   Ultimately, no hospitals would be willing to join an ACO if lower revenue put the…

Should CMS Push ACOs Into Two-Sided Risk?: Part I

Garrett SchmittNo Comments, , , , ,

The Medicare Shared Savings Program (MSSP), now in its sixth full performance year, is at a significant crossroads. In creating the MSSP, Congress envisioned that Medicare accountable care organizations (ACOs) could moderate Medicare spending and improve quality of care by providers taking greater responsibility for costs and quality. While MSSP ACOs have clearly improved the…

Key Issues Impacting Two-Sided Risk Accountable Care Organizations

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Medicare accountable care organizations (ACOs) operating under two-sided financial risk arrangements save the federal healthcare program more than one-sided risk organizations. But policymakers must address financial incentives, benchmarks, and other issues to ensure two-sided risk ACOs continue to generate savings, the Medicare Payment Advisory Commission (MedPAC) recently reported. “Medicare ACOs were created to help moderate…

Medicare advisers mull altering bonus payments for ACOs

Garrett SchmittNo Comments,

A stronger payment incentive for certain coordinated care organizations could be the key to reducing healthcare costs, according to the primary group that advises Congress on Medicare policy. At a public meeting last week, members of the Medicare Payment Advisory Commission (MedPAC) discussed possible tweaks and changes to accountable care organizations (ACOs), including expansion of a major bonus incentive…

MedPAC urges Congress to eliminate MIPS

Garrett SchmittNo Comments,

The Medicare Payment Advisory Commission has released its semiannual report on Medicare payment policy to Congress, which includes a recommendation to axe the Merit-based Incentive Payment System. MedPAC said it decided MIPS should be eliminated after a two-year deliberative process. “We first examined options for improving MIPS as it was implemented, and we provided constructive…

MedPAC Backs Bid to Scrap MIPS Medicare Pay System Amid Dissent

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WASHINGTON — Members of an influential federal advisory panel sparred here today over a recommendation that would direct Medicare to scrap its fledgling Merit-based Incentive Payment System (MIPS) and instead implement a new approach for tying reimbursement to judgements about value of care. The Medicare Payment Advisory Commission (MedPAC) voted 14 to 2 in favor…

 
MedPAC Backs Bid to Scrap MIPS Medicare Pay System Amid Dissent