Washington, D.C. (December 1, 2025)
Accountable for Health (A4H) congratulates the CMS Innovation Center on today’s announcement of the new ACCESS Model. This initiative marks an important step toward modernizing care delivery in Original Medicare and empowering clinicians to use technology-supported tools to prevent disease and support people living with chronic conditions.
Medicare beneficiaries increasingly expect the same innovation and flexibility in their care that they experience in other parts of their lives. Today, CMS is signaling that Medicare must evolve to meet those expectations. By testing an outcome-aligned, technology-enabled care model, CMS is helping ensure that prevention, chronic disease management, and patient engagement can happen wherever patients are.
A4H is encouraged to see CMS continue advancing models that center outcomes, patient choice, and accountable care. Provider organizations across the country have proven that when clinicians are given the tools, flexibility, and aligned incentives to focus on prevention and chronic disease management, patients experience better outcomes at lower costs. ACCESS builds on this progress by encouraging clinicians to partner with technology-supported care teams and rewarding improvements in meaningful clinical outcomes tied to conditions like hypertension, diabetes, chronic musculoskeletal pain, depression, and more.
As we learn more, A4H looks forward to working with CMS and our members to understand how ACCESS will complement existing accountable care models and support providers caring for complex beneficiaries. We also encourage CMS to provide a clear pathway for ACO REACH and other CMMI models approaching sunset, ensuring that organizations already delivering high-value, patient-centered care can continue to innovate without interruption.
Contact:
Mara McDermott, CEO of Accountable for Health
mmcdermott@accountableforhealth.org
About Accountable for Health
Accountable for Health (A4H) is a 501(c)(4) national advocacy and policy analysis organization accelerating the adoption of sustainable, effective accountable care that improves health care quality and outcomes and lower costs. We represent a broad, diverse group of accountable care stakeholders working to improve the way health care is delivered to people across the county, across various payers, programs, and delivery models. A4H provides advocacy, research, and education to improve outcomes and patient experiences while lowering costs.
For more information, visit https://accountableforhealth.org/. Follow us on LinkedIn and Twitter (@acct4health). ###
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