CMS Innovation Center Cancels Eight Models Ahead of New Strategy Announcement

The CMS Innovation Center (CMMI) announced on March 12 that certain payment models will be canceled or end by Dec. 31, 2025. The declaration was made after a review of the model portfolio by the Trump administration, which asserts that models must reduce spending in addition to maintaining or improving quality. The Biden administration sought to position improvements in quality that did not increase costs as an appropriate goal as well. The eight impacted models will result in nearly $750 million in savings: Making Care Primary, Primary Care

First, Vermont All Payer ACO, Maryland Total Cost of Care Model, Maternal Opioid Use Model, End-Stage Renal Disease Treatment Choices, Medicare Two Dollar Drug List Model, and Accelerating Clinical Evidence Model. CMMI says it will help participants in the affected models minimize disruption to their operations and the beneficiaries they serve, but did not provide details about what support it may offer.

The agency also plans to announce a new strategy based on “guiding principles to make Americans healthier by preventing disease through evidence-based practices, empowering people with information to make better decisions, and driving choice and competition.”