CMS estimates the number of improper payments made under Medicare fee-for-service declined by $20.7 billion over a seven-year period, according to a Nov. 15 update from the agency.
In fiscal year 2021, the Medicare fee-for-service improper payment rate was 6.26 percent, a historic low, according to the news release. This is the fifth consecutive year the Medicare fee-for-service improper payment rate has been below 10 percent.
CMS said the improper payment rate decline was due to its "aggressive corrective actions."
"CMS is undertaking a concerted effort to address the root causes of improper payments in our programs," said CMS Administrator Chiquita Brooks-LaSure. "We intend to build on this success and take the lessons we’ve learned to ensure a high level of integrity across all of our programs."