Advance Payment ACO Initiative
The CMS Innovation Center is seeking public comment on whether it should offer an Advance Payment Initiative that would allow certain Accountable Care Organizations (ACOs) participating in the Medicare Shared Savings Program access to a portion of their shared savings up front, helping providers make the infrastructure and staff investments crucial to the success of ACOs.
Advance Payment Initiative
The Innovation Center is also considering an Advance Payment Initiative for ACOs entering the Medicare Shared Savings Program to test whether pre-paying a portion of future shared savings could encourage participation in the Medicare Shared Savings Program. Early comments on the proposed Medicare Shared Savings Program rules suggest that some providers lack ready access to the capital needed to invest in infrastructure and staff for care coordination. As such, CMS is seeking comment on the idea of allowing eligible organizations participating in the Medicare Shared Savings Program to receive an advance on the shared savings they are expected to earn, in the form of a monthly payment for each aligned Medicare beneficiary. ACOs would need to provide a plan for using these funds to build care coordination capabilities, and meet other organizational criteria. Advance payments would be recouped through the ACOs’ earned shared savings.
Referenced from CMS: http://innovations.cms.gov/areas-of-focus/seamless-and-coordinated-care-models/advance-payment/
