Here are six things to know.
1. CMS is implementing the Quality Payment Program in 2017.
2. In a letter to CMS Acting Administrator Andy Slavitt, AMGA CEO Donald Fisher, PhD, said the MACRA final rule indicates an ACO Track 1+ offers an opportunity to equalize how federal regulations govern the Medicare Shared Savings Program and the Medicare Advantage programs.
3. In the letter, Dr. Fisher also pointed to the importance of ensuring 2017 is the only transition year for the Merit-Based Incentive Payment System, and said he hopes CMS will fully implement the MIPS program in performance year 2018. That way by 2018, providers who have made the significant investments in the health IT, staff and cultural changes needed to succeed in a risk-based reimbursement system have the opportunity to do so.
“AMGA is eager to work with the incoming administration to develop the Track 1+ model,” said Dr. Fisher in a news release. “The vast majority of ACO participants are excluded from the Advanced Alternative Payment models, but if done correctly, Track 1+ will serve as an on ramp for providers to move toward increased risk sharing.”
4. Specifically, the letter recommends CMS implement a Track 1+ program that addresses the disparity in how quality is handled in the Medicare Advantage program, as compared to the ACO program.
5. AMGA also supports various other recommendations, such as ensuring Track 1+ is available to all current ACO participants, as well as ensuring existing ACO program and ACO demonstration participants are able to participate in Track 1+ in any performance year.
6. To read the full letter, click here.
More articles on healthcare finance:
A state-by-state breakdown of 80 rural hospital closures
10 hospital bankruptcies in 2016
Texas hospital to close ER
