Frequently the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) receive a bad rap in the press—costs, services, spending. However, as with some reporting, the positive programs and successes are not highlighted or are buried are page 32 or in the fine print. Often the lay public and even health professionals are unaware that CMS has an Innovation Center that tests various payment and service delivery models with the aim to achieve better care for patients, better health for our communities, and lower costs.
There are several programs to improve our health care system; I’m just highlighting those most pertinent to care delivery. Programs include: Primary Care Transformation (to increase access, promote health and reduce overall health care costs through patient-centered medical homes); Initiatives to Speed the Adoption of Best Practices (to test new models for disseminating evidence-based best practices and significantly increasing the speed of adoption); and Initiatives to Accelerate the Development and Testing of New Payment and Service Delivery Models (through collaborations with local and regional partnerships).
Breakthroughs in health care delivery are happening. For more information on the state and national levels, visit The CMS Innovation Center. InnovaHealth Innovations provides consulting services to medical practices to help them be successful in today’s complex healthcare environment. You can reach IHI at: 503.341.0593.