The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services has reached its goal to have 30% of all Medicare payments tied to alternative payment models by the end of the year, 11 months ahead of schedule, the agency announced Thursday.
Last month, CMS Principal Deputy Administrator and Chief Medical Officer Patrick Conway, M.D., said the agency was confident it would meet its 30% goal by the end of 2016. But payment data shows CMS reached its target goal in January 2016 — a full 11 months before the deadline — the agency announced in a fact sheet.
CMS credited meeting its “ambitious” goal early with the addition of 121 new Accountable Care Organizations, and the growth of payment models like the Bundled Payments for Care Improvement Initiative.
“Our announcement today of reaching the goal of 30 percent of Medicare fee-for-service payments in alternative payment models represents a major milestone in the continued effort towards focusing on quality and care coordination in the way we pay for care,” CMS said.
CMS set the 30% goal last year, when the amount of value-based payments was at 20%. The agency aims to have half of all Medicare payments be value linked by 2018.
