On April 29, CMS issued a final rule to extend the Comprehensive Care for Joint Replacement model by an additional three performance years. A number of modifications effective in the extension period aim to improve the model and reflect Medicare policy changes over the last several years. CMS anticipates that CJR will save the Medicare program an additional $217 million over the extension period. The following summarizes the most notable model changes: Three new performance years have been added: PY 6 will include episodes that end between Oct. 1, 2021 and Dec. 31, 2022; PY 7 will include episodes that end between Jan. 1, 2023 and Dec. 31, 2023; and PY 8 will include episodes that end between Jan. 1, 2024 and Dec. 31, 2024. Episode definitions under the model have been expanded to include total hip arthroplasty and total knee arthroplasty procedures performed in the hospital outpatient setting. The episode categories under the extension are site-neutral and are defined as: MS-DRG 470: ...

It’s been a year: a year since the first lockdowns and a year since the landscape of healthcare in the U.S. changed forever. While we’re still evaluating the impacts of the pandemic on healthcare policy, we now have seen enough data to assess the effect of the past year on alternative payments models and how participants are reacting. It’s been reassuring to see the strength of APMs has broadly held steady, as has the resolve of the participants in those programs, despite the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic. Here’s what we’ve learned this year, along with what (we think) those lessons can teach us about the future. COVID-19 has not stopped the progress of APMs — but it is delaying it. COVID-19 has extended the period of some programs, like the Comprehensive Care for Joint Replacement and Oncology Care Model, and delayed the start of others, like Kidney Care First and the Radiation Oncology Model. This is, in part, a function of an overwhelmed system. As policymakers and healthcare org...

The challenges and benefits of bundled payments and risk-based arrangements is one of the biggest issues facing the healthcare field. Kelly Price, DataGen’s Vice President and Chief of Healthcare Data Analytics, and Stephanie Kovalick, Chief Strategy Officer at Sage Growth Partners sat down to help shed some light on ways to succeed with bundled payments and risk-based payment models. Read more about this conversation in our new installment, “The Future of Payment Reform: How can providers, patients, and payers benefit—and who bears the burden? ” 

As we look ahead to 2017—a year that’s sure to bring changes to the way healthcare is delivered under the new Trump Administration—Kelly Price, DataGen’s Vice President and Chief of Healthcare Data Analytics, sat down with Stephanie Kovalick, Chief Strategy Officer at Sage Growth Partners, to provide expert perspective on the current and future states of payment reform. Download 

The healthcare industry is in a state of quiet anticipation as we await the second data feed from the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services’ (CMS) Comprehensive Care for Joint Replacement (CJR) bundled payment model. Participants still have a lot of questions?  Will the program help hospitals deliver better accountability for care? Will care be coordinated more effectively? Is it going to help reduce costs—and if it does, for whom?  Learn more

Launched on April 1, 2016, CJR is the first mandatory bundled payment program from CMS.  Affecting more than 750 hospitals in 67 markets, CJR creates a host of new challenges and opportunities for participants. Read the article to learn more about the program and prepare for the initial data release .

It is critical that healthcare executives understand and stay abreast of the implications on their organizations of the rapidly evolving innovation in healthcare payment and delivery driven by Medicare and other payers. This white paper examines areas of opportunity and ways for hospitals to achieve CJR success. Download Now

The Post-Acute Care Perspective on Bundled Payments--Webinar View Now

CMS has released its final rule for the Comprehensive Care for Joint Replacement (CJR) model.  In addition to dropping one “C” from the acronym, there are several substantive changes from the proposed rule; most important of which is that the program will now begin on April 1, 2016.   DataGen is revising its analytics to reflect all of the changes.  We will be ready to share insights on opportunities under CJR prior to the program’s official start.  We have updated our "Ten Things" paper to reflect the final rule.   Download White Paper

Hospitals may be the only risk-bearing entities under the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services' (CMS) Comprehensive Care for Joint Replacement (CJR) payment model, but there are major implications for post-acute care (PAC) providers.  Based on our review of the CJR program, this white paper outlines the top seven things PAC providers need to know about and act on to be successful partners in this and other emerging payment models. Download White Paper

In July 2015, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) proposed its Comprehensive Care for Joint Replacement (CCJR) payment model, a pilot bundled payment program for the most common inpatient surgeries for Medicare beneficiaries—hip and knee replacements, known as lower extremity joint replacements (LEJRs). While CMS’ increasing interest in bundled payments has been apparent, the announcement of this mandatory initiative was a surprise to many, given that the Bundled Payments for Care Improvement (BPCI) demonstration program, initiated in 2013, is still in its early stages.  CCJR would be mandatory for hospitals in 75 Metropolitan Statistical Areas (MSAs). This white paper examines the top ten things every hospital executive should know about the proposed CCJR program, its relationship to the BPCI demonstration, and the implications of this model for other innovative payment models.  Download White Paper