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CMS announced two primary care models within the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Innovation (CMMI) will be shut down by the end of 2025, earlier than originally scheduled. Though some leaders question what these models ending early means for value-based care (VBC) in general, this does not mean CMS is abandoning VBC in primary care as a core strategy. CMS specifically said: “The early termination of Primary Care First and Making Care Primary does not signal a retreat from the Center’s support of primary care providers, but rather a need to focus on different approaches that are consistent with the CMS Innovation Center’s statutory mandate and produce savings.”
The U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs plans to reorganize the management structure of the Veterans Health Administration. The department aims to eliminate redundant layers of bureaucracy, ensure consistent application of policies across all facilities and empower local hospital directors, according to a Dec. 15 VA news release. The reorganization will allow the VA to focus on care delivery and result in more defined roles and faster decision-making, the release said.
The House of Representatives passed a Republican-led package that seeks to address the affordability of healthcare without an extension of the soon-to-expire Affordable Care Act subsidies. Under the bill, unveiled on Friday, lawmakers would lean on association health plans, which allow employers to pool resources to purchase coverage, and individual coverage health reimbursement arrangements, or ICHRA, to offer additional options for enrollees. In addition, the legislation aims to address premiums by allocating for cost-sharing reduction payments beginning in 2027.
CMS floats 24 Medicare measure updates: 7 things to know
CMS on Dec. 15 published 24 quality and efficiency measures under consideration for adoption in Medicare programs. HHS employs this pre-rulemaking process to decide on measures for Medicare programs and releases a public list of the pitched measures each year. Interested parties can then provide recommendations and feedback. A news release said public commenting runs from Dec. 16 until Jan. 6.
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