Provider Associations Respond to CMS’s Bundled Payments RFI

In 2021, the Innovation Center initiated a strategic overhaul with the vision of establishing an equitable healthcare system characterized by high-quality, affordable, and person-centered care. To steer this updated vision, the Innovation Center is planning to create, implement, and assess future episode-based payment models, prioritizing five key strategic objectives. These objectives include the advancement of health equity and the promotion of accountable care. With an ambitious aim to have 100 percent of Medicare fee-for-service (FFS) beneficiaries and a substantial majority of Medicaid beneficiaries engaged in accountable care relationships by 2030, there's an acknowledgment of the necessity for additional opportunities for specialists to participate in accountable care. The CMS has articulated that one means of supporting accountable care and facilitating specialist involvement in value-based care initiatives is through episode-based payment models. The Innovation Center has already launched several such models, including bundled-payment models, with four of them either ongoing or slated for implementation in 2023.