The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services released a memo Dec. 16 announcing the agency’s intent to conduct a voluntary pilot in 2026, called the Service Level Data Collection for Initial Determinations and Appeals. CMS will collect data related to Medicare Advantage plan initial coverage decisions and processed appeals. CMS anticipates expanding the data collection to all MA plans in 2027. The deadline for interested MA plans to volunteer for the pilot is Jan. 9, 2026.

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The Medicare Payment Advisory Commission June 15 released its June report to Congress that estimated the association between Medicare Advantage enrollment and…
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The Department of Health and Human Services Office of Inspector General June 11 released two reports on high rates of coverage denials by Medicare Advantage…
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Members of Congress and hospital and health system leaders today gathered for a briefing in Washington, D.C., to discuss how payment delays in Medicare…
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The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services May 28 issued a final rule making changes to the Increasing Organ Transplant Access Model beginning July 1.…
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Approximately 35 million Americans are enrolled in Medicare Advantage plans in 2026, and that number is expected to grow to about 45 million MA enrollees by…
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The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services has released details on downloading its upcoming fiscal year 2025 Program for Evaluating Payment Patterns…