The proposed Senate legislation would provide a two-year extension of the 5% APM incentives created by the 2015 Medicare Access and CHIP Reauthorization Act. It also would make several improvements to the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services' value-based care programs, including:

Giving CMS authority to adjust thresholds to secure those incentive payments, allowing more opportunities to bring rural, underserved, primary care or specialty practices into APMs;
Eliminating the artificial revenue-based distinction that disadvantages rural and safety-net providers that are critical to improving access to care and improving health equity;
Creating a fairer, more transparent process to set financial spending targets so accountable care organizations (ACOs) are not penalized for their own success;
Establishing a voluntary track for ACOs to take on higher levels of risk;
Providing technical assistance for clinicians new to APMs; and
Studying ways to increase parity between APMs in traditional Medicare and Medicare Advantage so both programs are attractive and sustainable options.

The National Association of ACOs (NAACOS) supports the Senate bill. According to the association, ACOs have provided Medicare with more than $22 billion in gross savings and nearly $9 billion in net savings since 2012. Today, ACOs care for nearly 20% of all Medicare patients and nearly one-third of traditional Medicare patients.

Instant Insights /

New Senate bill would bolster move to value-based care in Medicare

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