The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) has issued a request for applications for a new voluntary Medicare payment model that will test technology-supported care to improve health and prevent and manage chronic disease. The model will focus on common conditions, such as high blood pressure, diabetes, chronic musculoskeletal pain, and depression.
The model is centered on clinical improvement or control of a condition based on each person’s starting point, rather than defined activities, giving clinicians greater flexibility to deliver technology-supported care in ways that best improve patient health.
Organizations participating in the Advancing Chronic Care with Effective, Scalable Solutions (ACCESS) Model will be expected to offer integrated, technology-supported care that may include activities such as clinician consultations, lifestyle and behavioral support, and use or monitoring of Food and Drug Administration-authorized devices.
Participating organizations will receive recurring payments for managing patients’ qualifying conditions, with full payment tied to achieving measurable health outcomes. Outcome targets will be based on the overall share of an organization’s patients and not on outcomes of individual patients.