CMS will reimburse healthcare organizations for patients’ wearable and app use if it improves their health conditions, Politico reported Dec. 4.
The agency revealed its ACCESS program Dec. 1 to encourage technology-supported care to better manage chronic illness among Medicare patients. Organizations can apply in January to join the 10-year pilot program, which kicks off July 1.
“We want people to make money building these solutions,” CMS Administrator Mehmet Oz, MD, said at a Dec. 4 event covered by the news outlet. “But we want outcomes.”
Participating organizations can collect upfront payments based on patients’ conditions — including chronic musculoskeletal pain, depression, diabetes and high blood pressure — but will only receive the full reimbursement if their health measures get better, according to the story. Primary care physicians are also eligible for a “comanagement” fee for referring a patient to an ACCESS partner and contributing to their care management. CMS hasn’t traditionally covered nonmedical wearables and health coaching apps.
Groups such as the American Medical Association, American College of Cardiology and American Psychiatric Association have praised ACCESS.
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