Last week, CMS released a flurry of regulations that included the long-awaited Calendar Year (CY) 2027 Medicare Physician Fee Schedule (MPFS) and Outpatient Prospective Payment System (OPPS) final rules. The agency also unexpectedly introduced proposals aimed at reducing “unexpectedly burdensome” conditions of participation (CoPs), rolling back mandatory obstetrical (OB) standards previously finalized in 2024.
What's Inside
"Make America Healthy Again" (MAHA) in the MPFS: New HCPCS billing codes for shared medical appointments intended to address social isolation and loneliness among Medicare beneficiaries; Removal of Area Deprivation Index (ADI) from Medicare Shared Savings Program (MSSP) Accountable Care Organization (ACO) risk adjustment methodology
Proposed Changes to OB-Specific CoP Standards: Removal of 4 OB-specific standards previously finalized in the CY2025 Outpatient Prospective Payment System (OPPS) final rule; New proposed OB standard specific to the collection of birth tissues from "live births"