What you need to know
CMS has released the final 2019 Medicare Physician Fee Schedule rule. This rule revises the Medicare Shared Savings Program (MSSP) and allows MSSP ACOs the opportunity to extend their current agreements by six months.
The Meridian ACO is taking advantage of this opportunity, extending their current agreement to June 30, 2019. Its ACO agreement was previously slated to end on December 31, 2018.
The details
Over the next six months, Hackensack Meridian Health will analyze CMS’ new model and decide if it will be beneficial to our organization and our patients to transition to a risk-bearing program after the 6-month extension.
What does this extension mean?
This 6-month extension means providers will maintain their “APM” status in MIPS, providing significant scoring advantages over non-participating ACO providers including:
- Automatic perfect score in the “Improvements Activities” category
- No assessment in the cost category
The ACO will also continue to facilitate quality reporting, keeping all participating providers MIPS compliant in 2019. Please note that while the participation extension period is only 6 months, quality and utilization will be assessed on the entire 2019 performance year.