PEPC was pleased to submit comments to the Office of the National Coordinator (ONC) on the 21st Century Cures Act: Establishment of Disincentives for Health Care Providers That Have Committed Information Blocking proposed rule.
We encourage ONC to carefully balance information blocking enforcement with efforts to make it easier for all providers to move into and remain in alternative payment models (APMs). We are concerned that the proposed rule would result in Medicare Shared Savings Program (MSSP) physicians being disproportionately penalized for information blocking, creating a disincentive for physicians to join ACOs and unnecessarily deny Medicare beneficiaries access to the additional services that come from being part of an MSSP ACO.
In our comments, we urge HHS to:
- Model its approach off other programs that provide clinicians with a notification of noncompliance and the opportunity to come into compliance before being penalized;
- Provide technical assistance to small and independent practices, and engage in more education and physician communication to ensure that providers understand what is permitted for other providers, IT vendors and other stakeholders; and
- Reconsider its proposal which would disproportionately impact ACOs, ACO participants, and ACO providers/suppliers.
To read the full response, click here.