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LAST CHANCE to PRE-REGISTER FOR FALL 2024 CONFERENCE!
Join us on October 16–18 at the Marriott Marquis Washington, D.C. for the Fall 2024 Conference. Meet NAACOS’ incoming CEO, Jeff Micklos, at the opening plenary featuring Jon Blum, CMS principal deputy administrator and chief operating officer, and author Dr. Robbie Pearl, who will speak about his new book ChatGPT, MD: How AI-Empowered Patients & Doctors Can Take Back Control of American Medicine. NAACOS will host a book signing with complimentary books for in-person participants following the conclusion of the opening plenary.
Full Agenda
Still time to pre-register! Register now for both the in-person and virtual conferences. All registrants receive access to the recorded conference sessions for six months. Don’t worry – you may also register on-site!
Boost Your Learning with a Pre-Conference Workshop
Pre-conference workshops will be held concurrently on Wednesday, October 16 from 1:00–5:00 pm ET. These workshops require separate registration from the main meeting. The three concurrent workshops will be:
- Optimizing Your Payer-Provider Arrangements led by Diwen Chen, NAACOS
- Shaping the Future: Evolving Practices in Chronic Disease Management led by Jen Brady, Advocate Health
- Fundamentals of ACO Success led by Bob Rauner, Partnership for a Healthy Nebraska
If you have already registered for the main conference and would like to add a workshop to your registration, please contact Emily Perron.
NEW VIRTUAL BOOT CAMP 101: REGISTRATION IS OPEN
Boot Camp 101 Registration is now open for Clinical Operations on November 14 and for Data and Analytics on November 21. Each is a one-day virtual event at the beginner-to-intermediate level with opportunities to interact with fellow participants and ask questions of faculty. All attendees receive access to the recordings of the live events to rewatch as needed. The events will run from 10:00 am to 6:00 pm ET in an interactive virtual environment. Detailed agendas are available.
NAACOS is also building a curriculum of Fundamentals, which are on-demand videos covering ACO essentials like compliance, basic data and analytics, and quality reporting for both MSSP and REACH. Compliance fundamentals are currently posted, and new topics will be added frequently. These videos are free to both members and non-members.
Boot Camp 201s are in-person events for experienced ACO employees and/or those who have completed our Boot Camp 101s. Mark your calendars for February 6–7 in Orlando when we will offer two concurrent tracks on Clinical Operations and Data and Analytics. Registration for these will open later this month.
ACO SHOWDOWN: THE RESULTS ARE IN!
And the winner is…VARMED! Second Place went to Silver State ACO, and Third Place went to ProviDRs Care.
If you were unable to attend the live event and are wondering “What is the ACO Showdown?”, the NAACOS ACO Showdown is a competition for ACOs to showcase their innovative use of the sponsoring company’s product. Our first Showdown was sponsored by ClinigenceHealth and held on October 1 with three ACOs presenting innovations and nearly 100 ACO colleagues serving as judges. The recording will soon be available, as well as information on future showdowns. If you are a business partner and are interested in sponsoring an ACO Showdown event, contact MaryJane Thomas.
UPCOMING DISCOVERY CALLS ADDRESS BCDA AND CHI
Join us on October 23 from 2:00 pm to 3:00 pm ET for a discovery call on Using Beneficiary Claims Data API (BCDA) in ACOs. On this call we will hear from Gabe Orthous, M.B.A., Director of Value Based Performance and Analytics, Health Choice Network, on their experience with the file integration and use process, as well as Brad Reel, Vice President, Risk Based Medicare Programs, Lumeris, and William Coddington, ACO Finance Manager, Unity Point Accountable Care, on their investigation into the process.
To learn more about discovery calls and view previously recorded topics visit Discovery Calls. NAACOS is also planning a discovery call concerning Community Health Integration (CHI) services for November. More information will be included in future editions of this newsletter.
NEW RESOURCE FOR BENEFICIARY BOARD REPRESENTATIVES
NAACOS, in collaboration with the Patient Advocate Foundation, has created a recorded orientation webinar to educate Medicare ACO beneficiary board representatives on accountable care and engaging as a board representative. All Medicare ACOs are required to have at least one Medicare beneficiary representative on their Boards of Directors. Feedback on the 2023 ACO patient engagement survey showed that many ACOs struggle to effectively engage beneficiaries in these roles and indicated the need for additional support.
- Share this public resource with your networks and let us know what you think. We will continue to evolve this content to meet your needs.
- See our additional resource on effectively recruiting and engaging patient representatives.
WE NEED PATIENT STORIES ON ACCOUNTABLE CARE’S IMPACT
The Alliance for Value-Based Patient Care, of which NAACOS is a founding member, recently published a story underscoring the important work Advocate Health Care does to improve patient care.
We would like to highlight additional patient stories through the Alliance. If you have a story that highlights the impact of accountable care, please share with David Pittman.
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CONGRESS ON THE CAMPAIGN TRAIL
The election is less than four weeks away, which means Members of Congress are on the campaign trail with their final messages to voters. While the presidential election may get most of the media attention, the down-ballot congressional races will determine which party controls the legislative agenda in Washington, D.C.
The NAACOS advocacy team will be hosting a session at the fall conference in Washington, D.C., where former congressional and administration staff will discuss the current state of the election and how the outcome could impact the health care sector in the short and longer-term.
HURRICANE HELENE’S IMPACT ON ACOS
The HHS Secretary issued public health emergencies for five states affected by the devastation of Hurricane Helene. MSSP and ACO REACH have extreme and uncontrollable circumstances (EUC) policies that protect ACOs. This includes reducing shared losses and using an alternative approach to calculate the quality score. CMS will issue information on the counties which qualify for the EUC policy. Application of the policy is defined by the percent of ACO-assigned beneficiaries who reside in a qualifying county and the number of months in the year that a public health emergency was in place. CMS has indicated they will share more information soon.
MSSP 2023 PERFORMANCE RESULTS ON DECK
In the recently finalized rule on mitigating the impact of anomalous catheter spending, CMS indicated that 2023 MSSP results will be available in late October, with shared savings payments going to ACOs in mid-November.
SECOND SNAPSHOT OF 2024 QUALIFYING APM DATA AVAILABLE
CMS recently updated its Quality Payment Program Participation Status Tool based on the second snapshot of APM data. The second snapshot includes data from Medicare Part B claims with dates of service between January 1, 2024, and June 30, 2024.
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WHAT WE'RE WATCHING: NEWS ABOUT ACOS AND HEALTH CARE |
- A recent Health Affairs Forefront piece by CMS leadership highlights efforts to expand accountable care opportunities in Medicare.
- The Medicare Payment Advisory Commission (MedPAC) is holding its October meeting this week to discuss nursing homes, home health, annual beneficiary and provider focus groups, and Medicare Advantage supplemental benefits.
- The Duke Margolis Institute for Health Policy hosted an event, Medicare Accountable Care in 2025 and Beyond: Building on Successes and Finding New Opportunities. Health policy thought leaders, including NAACOS Senior Vice President of Government Affairs Aisha Pittman, provided insights into the role of value-based care in Medicare payment reform. A recording of the event is available online.
- The Acute Hospital Care at Home (AHCAH) program saw 30-day post-discharge spending on AHCAH patients at about 22 percent or about $1,640 less than brick-and-mortal patients. The report on the model suggests AHCAH delivers safe, quality care.
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