NAPH Submits Comments on Advance Payment Initiative - June 21, 2011

On June 17, NAPH submitted its comments on the proposed Advanced Payment Initiative to the Center for Medicare and Medicaid Innovation (CMMI) at the federal Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS). In conjunction with CMS’ implementation of the Medicare Shared Savings Program (MSSP), the CMMI is considering launching a companion initiative that would prepay a portion of future shared savings in an effort to increase participation in Accountable Care Organizations (ACOs). In the comment letter, NAPH recommends the CMMI implement this companion initiative in a way that encourages broad participation by safety net health systems. NAPH also urged the CMMI to consider NAPH’s proposed Safety Net ACO demonstration, which is designed to test effective models of care for low-income patients. The full NAPH comment letter is available online. Additional details regarding the MSSP proposed rule and NAPH’s comments can also be found online.