Federal Innovations Center Has Ignored LTSS, Says Alwan

The Center for Medicare and Medicaid Innovation (CMMI) “has devoted surprising little attention” to providers of long-term services and supports (LTSS), said CAST Executive Director Majd Alwan at a recent Capitol Hill symposium hosted by Genworth.

CMMI, which is part of the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, was established by the Affordable Care Act and charged with testing “innovative payment and service delivery models to reduce program expenditures …while preserving or enhancing the quality of care” for beneficiaries of Medicare, Medicaid, and the Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP).

The Genworth symposium, which took place Sept. 22 on Capitol Hill, highlighted unique perspectives on solving the long-term care crisis, including new technologies that promise to improve care delivery in this sector. The annual symposium is designed to bring together members of Congress and their staff with various stakeholder organizations.

According to Politico, Alwan described the lack of resources CMMI has devoted to the LTSS sector as “mind boggling,” given the potential impact that technology and delivery reform could have on that sector.

Alwan acknowledged that federal health officials have tried to use alternative payment models to encourage nursing homes to adopt electronic health records. But that approach won’t work, he said.

“That may have provided incentive in urban areas where there are larger providers and Accountable Care Organizations,” he said. However, Alwan suggested that these incentives did not address smaller and rural geographic areas, according to Poltico.