Two Landmark Affordable Care Act Achievements

Earlier today, the President announced two landmark achievements for the U.S. health care system since the passage of the Affordable Care Act. First, more than 20 million Americans have gained health insurance. The country has the lowest uninsured rate ever recorded. Second, as of January 2016, more than 30% of Medicare Part A and B payments are tied to alternative payment models. This latter milestone follows the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services’ challenge to shift the way health care is paid for, away from the quantity of services to the quality and value of care provided. CMS is proud to achieve the 30% target almost a year ahead of schedule. Moreover, true transformation of our health system cannot be done through Medicare alone, and so CMS looks forward to continuing to work with partners across the country to achieve the goals of tying 30% of spending to APMs by the end of 2016 and 50% by the end of 2018 for the entire U.S. health care system. Any healthcare professional who has not set specific goals to consider doing so, and to join the Health Care Payment Learning and Action Network (LAN) effort to track progress across the public and private sector. Working together we can implement new payment models, learn what works, scale successes, and improve patient care. We can deliver on the promise of a health system that achieves better care, smarter spending, and better health outcomes for everyone in our health system. Thank you for your service and for your leadership in this effort.