CMS Releases MACRA Final Rule, Easing 2017 Reporting Requirements

On October 14, 2016, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) released the final rule for the Medicare Access and CHIP Reauthorization Act of 2015 (MACRA). The final rule marks the most significant reform to our health care system since the enactment of the Affordable Care Act in 2010, providing Medicare incentives to reward quality and value—not volume—through the use of alternative payment models such as accountable care organizations. The final rule includes changes that significantly soften certain requirements from the proposed rule, with CMS emphasizing that physicians will be allowed to "pick their pace" for satisfying MACRA requirements that begin on January 1, 2017.