CMS Finalizes Physician Fee Schedule, with ACO Changes Relevant to Nursing Homes

The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) aims to further advance its overall value-based care strategy with the finalized 20224 Medicare Physician Fee Schedule (PFS) – adding ways for medically complex, high-cost beneficiaries like those in nursing homes to participate in Medicare Shared Savings Programs (MSSPs). Additionally, CMS therapy assistants can be more generally […]

REACH ACOs Expand in 2023, Most Offer 3-Day Stay Waiver for Skilled Nursing Care

The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) on Tuesday announced an expansion to certain accountable care initiatives in 2023, doubling down on efforts to have all patients with traditional Medicare in an accountable care relationship by 2030. More than 700,000 health care providers, including nursing homes, will participate in at least one of three […]

ACOs Generated Slight Medicare Savings from 2013 to 2016 in New Calculation

Accountable care organizations (ACOs) have generated a slight reduction in overall Medicare spending, a new analysis found — adding another viewpoint to a growing and occasionally contradictory body of research. The Medicare Payment Advisory Commission (MedPAC) determined that ACOs led to a 1 to 2 percentage-point drop in Medicare outlays between 2013 and 2016, though […]