Advocacy Update

Advocating for HPM Patients and Providers as Medicare Payment Policy Evolves

Phillip E. Rogers, MD FAAHPM

Medicare reimbursement is changing. The uncertainty surrounding these changes can be unsettling, even for those of us tracking the laws and regulations implementing reform. At the same time, the move from volume- to value-based reimbursement may provide new opportunities for hospice and palliative care providers to make the case for the work we do. To that end, AAHPM is working hard to influence the future of Medicare payment policy.

Improving Care for Chronic Conditions

Early this year, the Academy submitted feedback on policy options floated by the U.S. Senate Finance Committee’s Bipartisan Chronic Care Working Group. The Committee, which has jurisdiction over the Medicare program, established the Working Group in May 2015 and invited stakeholders to share ideas for ways Medicare could help improve outcomes for vulnerable beneficiaries living with multiple chronic illnesses. Congressional staff conducted follow-up meetings with some of these stakeholders— including AAHPM and the National Coalition for Hospice and Palliative Care—to learn more about their suggestions. The result was a policy options paper that outlined specific proposals aimed at improving disease management, streamlining care coordination, improving quality, and reducing Medicare costs.