CMS Administrator Don Berwick, MD, said he would listen carefully to concerns about newly released proposed rules for accountable care organizations, according to an article he wrote in the New England Journal of Medicine in conjunction with release of the proposed rules.
"At this point the rule is only a proposal," Dr. Berwick wrote. CMS "will carefully review the comments we receive in response to the proposed rule before issuing a final rule later this year." HHS also announced it will hold "a series of open-door forums and listening sessions" during the 60-day comment period on the new regulations.
In an internal CMS memo, obtained by The Hill, CMS officials indicated they were expecting to be criticized for making the comment period too short. In a prepared answer to a possible comment on this, the memo stated that 60 days is the typical time limit for proposed rules and the four federal agencies involved in rulemaking have held "numerous meetings and calls on key issues on the program" in the past several months.
Dr. Berwick's other statements on the new rules focus on how ACOs could change the healthcare paradigm by addressing fragmentation of the system. "ACOs are not just a new way to pay for care but a new model for the organization and delivery of care," he said in an HHS release.
In a question and answer session with reporters on the new rules, Dr. Berwick was asked to comment on the strong likelihood that he will have to step down from his post by the end of the year. Dr. Berwick responded that the question was off-topic and he would be happy to answer it in a separate interview.
Here are some other comments Dr. Berwick made in his New England Journal of Medicine perspective paper:
1. Innovation Center will test ACO Support Platform. The new Center for Medicare and Medicaid Innovation will start testing "innovative models for a nationwide technical support platform for ACOs, to complement the numerous ongoing efforts in which the private sector is already engaged," Dr. Berwick wrote.
2. More to come on medical homes, bundled payments. Other delivery-reform efforts are under way or under consideration, such as expanded use of medical homes, bundled payments, value-based purchasing, IT adoption and payment reforms.
3. Not the same as the group practice demo. While the Medicare Physician Group Practice Demonstration, the model for ACOs, produced "only modest" savings, it "helped to identify several factors that are critical to improving quality and increasing the opportunities for shared savings," he wrote.
4. 'Voices of community' will be on ACO boards. The governing board of an ACO would have to include "voices of the community and the Medicare patients it serves," Dr. Berwick wrote.
Read Dr. Berwick's piece in the New England Journal of Medicine on ACOs.
Read more coverage of the release of ACO proposed rules:
- Leaked Internal CMS Memo Provides Frank Answers to Controversial Questions on ACOs
- 10 Key Points in Newly Released Proposed Rules on ACOs
- IRS Issues Notice on Tax-Exempt Status of Hospitals in ACOs
https://www.beckershospitalreview.com/hospital-physician-relationships/10-key-points-in-newly-released-proposed-rules-on-acos.html
"At this point the rule is only a proposal," Dr. Berwick wrote. CMS "will carefully review the comments we receive in response to the proposed rule before issuing a final rule later this year." HHS also announced it will hold "a series of open-door forums and listening sessions" during the 60-day comment period on the new regulations.
In an internal CMS memo, obtained by The Hill, CMS officials indicated they were expecting to be criticized for making the comment period too short. In a prepared answer to a possible comment on this, the memo stated that 60 days is the typical time limit for proposed rules and the four federal agencies involved in rulemaking have held "numerous meetings and calls on key issues on the program" in the past several months.
Dr. Berwick's other statements on the new rules focus on how ACOs could change the healthcare paradigm by addressing fragmentation of the system. "ACOs are not just a new way to pay for care but a new model for the organization and delivery of care," he said in an HHS release.
In a question and answer session with reporters on the new rules, Dr. Berwick was asked to comment on the strong likelihood that he will have to step down from his post by the end of the year. Dr. Berwick responded that the question was off-topic and he would be happy to answer it in a separate interview.
Here are some other comments Dr. Berwick made in his New England Journal of Medicine perspective paper:
1. Innovation Center will test ACO Support Platform. The new Center for Medicare and Medicaid Innovation will start testing "innovative models for a nationwide technical support platform for ACOs, to complement the numerous ongoing efforts in which the private sector is already engaged," Dr. Berwick wrote.
2. More to come on medical homes, bundled payments. Other delivery-reform efforts are under way or under consideration, such as expanded use of medical homes, bundled payments, value-based purchasing, IT adoption and payment reforms.
3. Not the same as the group practice demo. While the Medicare Physician Group Practice Demonstration, the model for ACOs, produced "only modest" savings, it "helped to identify several factors that are critical to improving quality and increasing the opportunities for shared savings," he wrote.
4. 'Voices of community' will be on ACO boards. The governing board of an ACO would have to include "voices of the community and the Medicare patients it serves," Dr. Berwick wrote.
Read Dr. Berwick's piece in the New England Journal of Medicine on ACOs.
Read more coverage of the release of ACO proposed rules:
- Leaked Internal CMS Memo Provides Frank Answers to Controversial Questions on ACOs
- 10 Key Points in Newly Released Proposed Rules on ACOs
- IRS Issues Notice on Tax-Exempt Status of Hospitals in ACOs
https://www.beckershospitalreview.com/hospital-physician-relationships/10-key-points-in-newly-released-proposed-rules-on-acos.html