On Aug. 1, CMS released additional information regarding the agency's July announcement that BPCI Advanced participants would be allowed to retroactively withdraw all or some episode initiators and clinical episodes from the model. The statement clarified that participants must notify the agency of their intent to withdraw by March 1, 2019, and participants withdrawing from the model will not be able to reapply during the Spring 2019 enrollment period.

The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) recently announced the deadline for submitting signed participation agreements and selecting clinical episodes for the Bundled Payments for Care Improvement (BPCI) Advanced model has been extended to Aug. 8.

Additionally, CMS announced that the agency will allow BPCI Advanced participants to retroactively withdraw all or some episode initiators and clinical episodes from the model in March 2019. The announcement came as CMS began uploading new preliminary target prices and claims data for some applicants due to inaccurate allowed amounts for select inpatient claims.

Last month, the College joined the American Medical Association, American College of Physicians and American College of Surgeons, in the submission of a letter calling for CMS to offer two additional start date options for participation in the BPCI Advanced alternative payment model (APM) in 2019, noting that many applicants had yet to receive data from the agency on episode target prices and summary and raw claims data.

If your practice is considering APM participation, access ACC's APM Framework. Broken into four modules of closed-ended questions, the APM Framework is your guide for navigating the most critical implications the cardiology community should consider when evaluating participation in an APM.

Keywords: ACC Advocacy, Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, U.S., Medicaid, Medicare, American Medical Association, Health Expenditures, Quality Payment Program

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