ACO Improvement Act of 2014

To amend title XVIII of the Social Security Act to improve the Medicare accountable care organization (ACO) program, and for other purposes. 1. Short title This Act may be cited as the ACO Improvement Act of 2014 2. Medicare ACO program improvements (a) In general Section 1899 of the Social Security Act ( 42 U.S.C. 1395jjj (l) Improving outcomes through greater beneficiary engagement (1) Use of beneficiary incentives Subject to approval of the Secretary and in the case of an ACO that has elected a two-sided risk model (as provided for under regulations), the Secretary shall permit the ACO— (A) to reduce or eliminate cost-sharing otherwise applicable under part B for some or all primary care services (as identified by the ACO) furnished by health care professionals (including, as applicable, professionals furnishing services through a rural health clinic or Federally qualified health center) within the network of the ACO; and (B) to develop additional incentive programs to encourage patient engagement and participation in their own wellness. The cost of the such incentives shall be borne by the ACO and shall not affect the payments under subsection (d). (2) Fostering stronger patient-provider ties (A) Providing prospective assignment of beneficiaries (i) In general In carrying out subsection (c), the Secretary shall provide for a prospective assignment of Medicare fee-for-service beneficiaries before the beginning of a year to an ACO and primary care ACO professional in accordance with the practice under this section for Pioneer ACOs, subject to clause (ii). (ii) Changing primary care ACO professionals An ACO shall permit a beneficiary to select the primary care ACO professional within the ACO to which the beneficiary is assigned. (B) Inclusion of ACO information in welcome to medicare visit and annual wellness visits The Secretary shall require a primary care ACO professional to include, as part of the initial preventive physical examination under section 1861(ww)(1) or personalized prevention plan services under section 1861(hhh)(1) for a Medicare fee-for-service beneficiary assigned to that professional under this section, to provide the beneficiary with information concerning the ACO program under this section, including information on any cost-sharing reductions allowed under this section. (C) Stakeholder advisory group The Secretary shall form a stakeholder group, including representatives of ACOs, health care providers (including ACO professionals), Medicare beneficiaries, and ACO experts, to advise the Secretary with recommendations to improve the process of ACO-to-beneficiary communication. (3) Moving from volume to value (A) Regulatory relief for moving to two-sided risk In the case of an ACO that has elected a two-sided risk model (as described in paragraph (1)), in addition to the authority provided under paragraph (1), the Secretary shall provide the following regulatory relief: (i) 3-day prior hospitalization waiver for SNF services Waiver of the 3-day prior hospitalization requirement for coverage of skilled nursing facility services. (ii) Homebound requirement waiver for home health services Waiver of the homebound requirement for coverage of home health services. (iii) RAC hospital audit relief Relief from reviews of scheduled admissions by recovery audit contractors for individuals attributed to an ACO when admitted on orders of a physician participating in the ACO. (B) Improving care coordination through access to telehealth (i) Flexibility in furnishing telehealth services In applying section 1834(m) in the case of an ACO that has elected a two-sided risk model (as described in paragraph (1)), the ACO may elect to have the limitations on originating site (under paragraph (4)(C) of such section) and on the use of store-and-forward technologies (under paragraph (1) of such section) not apply. The previous sentence shall not be construed as affecting the authority of the Secretary under subsection (f) to waive other provisions of such section. (ii) Provision of remote monitoring in connection with home health services Nothing in this section shall be construed as preventing an ACO from including payments for remote patient monitoring and home-based video conferencing services in connection with the provision of home health services (under conditions for which payment for such services would not be made under section 1895 for such services) in a manner that is financially equivalent to the furnishing of a home health visit. (4) Establishing greater certainty for ACOs (A) Benchmarks and payments The Secretary shall conduct a demonstration project to test the use of payment benchmarks that take into account geographic area differences, such as differences in spending trends within and across regions, and variations in delivery and utilization based on the socioeconomic status of beneficiaries served. (B) Advance notification of ACOs of benchmarks and past performance The Secretary shall inform ACOs, in advance of each performance period, of the quality benchmarks applicable to the ACO and period and of the past performance (if any) of the ACO under this section. (C) Study and report on feasibility on providing electronic access to Medicare claims data The Secretary shall conduct a study regarding the feasibility of establishing a system of electronic access of providers of services and suppliers to in-process and complete patient claims data. Such system may be a modification of an existing data base, such as the Virtual Research Data Center. The study shall take into account the measures needed to ensure the security and privacy of beneficiary and provider information. Not later than one year after the date of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary shall submit to Congress a report on such study. The Secretary shall include in such report such recommendations as the Secretary deems appropriate. . (b) Requiring testing of global capitation payment model Section 1899(i) of the Social Security Act ( 42 U.S.C. 1395jjj(i) (1) in the heading, by striking Option to use other payment models Alternative payment models (2) in paragraph (1), by inserting before the period at the end the following: except that the Secretary shall, beginning no later than January 1, 2016, establish one or more demonstration programs to test the payment model described in paragraph (3)(A) (3) in paragraph (3)(A), by striking is any payment model (i) a global capitation model in which an ACO is at financial risk for all items and services covered under parts A and B; and (ii) any other payment model that the Secretary determines will improve the quality and efficiency of items and services furnished under this title. . (c) Assignment taking into account services of non-Physician practitioners Section 1899(c) of the Social Security Act ( 42 U.S.C. 1395jjj(c) (or, in the case of an ACO that is located in a rural or medically underserved area or that is affiliated with a Federally qualified health center or rural health clinic, an ACO professional described in subsection (h)(1)(B)) subsection (h)(1)(A) (d) Creating incentives for ACO development The Secretary of Health and Human Services shall develop a mechanism to make permanent those ACO-related pilot programs, including the Advance Payment ACO Model, that have been successful. The Secretary shall submit to Congress a report on the study and shall include in the report such recommendations, including such changes in legislation, as the Secretary deems appropriate. (e) Effective date The amendments made by subsection (a) shall apply to plan years beginning on or after January 1, 2016.

Summary: ACO Improvement Act of 2014 - Amends title XVIII (Medicare) of the Social Security Act with respect to the shared savings program under which groups of service providers and suppliers meeting specified criteria may work together to manage and coordinate care for Medicare fee-for-service beneficiaries through an accountable care organization (ACO). Directs the Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS) to permit an ACO that has elected a two-sided risk model to: (1) reduce or eliminate cost-sharing under Medicare part B (Supplementary Medical Insurance) for some or all primary care services furnished by health care professionals within the ACO network; and (2) develop additional incentive programs to encourage patient engagement and participation in their own wellness. Prescribes requirements for fostering stronger patient-provider ties.  Directs the Secretary to require a primary care ACO professional to provide the beneficiary with information concerning the ACO program as part of the initial preventive physical examination of the beneficiary. Directs the Secretary to form a stakeholder group including representatives of ACOs, health care providers, Medicare beneficiaries, and ACO experts.  Requires such parties to advise the Secretary with recommendations to improve the process of ACO-to-beneficiary communication. Prescribes requirements for regulatory relief for an ACO that has elected a two-sided risk model and for improving care coordinatiion through access to telehealth. Directs the Secretary to: (1) conduct a demonstration project to test the use of payment benchmarks that take into account geographic area differences, (2) study the feasibility of establishing a system of electronic access of service providers and suppliers to in-process and complete patient claims data, (3) establish one or more demonstration programs to test the global capitation payment model, and (4) develop a mechanism to make permanent those ACO-related pilot programs that have been successful.