The Medicare Access and CHIP Reauthorization Act (MACRA) that was signed into law in April 2015 is setting up groundbreaking changes to the way physicians are paid by Medicare.
For starters, the act permanently repealed the hopelessly flawed sustainable growth rate formula, preventing a 21 percent cut to Medicare reimbursement rates. But it also extends the Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP) for two years and sets up a new, two-track Medicare physician payment system that emphasizes value-based payment models.
The AAFP is pulling no punches to make sure family physicians are poised to make the most of this new era of value-based payment -- working in Washington to show legislators and regulators how the law can best support primary care, while at the same time showing individual family physicians the concrete steps they can take to succeed in MACRA's new payment and quality reporting framework.
Keep an eye on AAFP News for timely updates about how the AAFP is flexing its muscles to shape MACRA into a tool that properly compensates family physicians for what they do better than anyone else -- provide high-quality, comprehensive, compassionate care for their patients.
CMS Releases Updated 2018 MIPS Eligibility Tool
April 11, 2018 01:17 pm — CMS has finally updated an online tool that physicians need so they can check their eligibility for the 2018 Merit-based Incentive Payment Program.
Full Story »Recent MACRA Ready News
New Payment Model Deserves Quick Approval, AAFP Tells HHS
03/30/2018 — After being greenlighted by a panel of experts Congress convened last year, testing for a new payment model created by the AAFP and tailored for primary care is only awaiting federal approval, the Academy recently reminded HHS.
02/21/2018 — Join a study examining the burden of quality measure reporting and qualify for credit in the Merit-based Incentive Payment System improvement activity performance category.
Action Alert: Report 2017 MIPS Performance Data by March 31
02/16/2018 — Family physicians who need to submit data for the 2017 Merit-Based Incentive Payment System must do so by March 31 to avoid a 4 percent penalty in 2019.
Value-based Payment Modifier Initiative Winds Down
01/23/2018 — CMS recently released the results of the final year of the Value-based Payment Modifier Program, which show fewer physicians receiving a negative payment adjustment.
Find the tools you need to make the most of the Medicare Access and CHIP Reauthorization Act on the AAFP's dedicated resource page.
Read the AAFP Leader Voices blog for two-way discussion on issues important to family medicine.
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