Newsroom
Keep up to date with what’s happening at the Innovation Center—look below for press releases, fact sheets, speeches, and other materials.
Innovation Center News Releases:
May 08, 2012
We Can’t Wait: HHS announces first 26 Health Care Innovation Awards
Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Kathleen Sebelius today announced the first batch of organizations for Health Care Innovation awards. Made possible by the health care law – the Affordable Care Act – the awards will support 26 innovative projects nationwide that will save money, deliver high quality medical care and enhance the health care workforce. The preliminary awardees announced today expect to reduce health spending by $254 million over the next 3 years.
April 26, 2012
HHS announces new Affordable Care Act options for community-based care
HHS finalized the Community First Choice rule, which is a new State plan option under Medicaid, and announced the participants in the Independence At Home Demonstration program, which encourages primary care practices to provide home-based care to chronically ill Medicare patients.
April 10, 2012
New Affordable Care Act program to improve care, control Medicare costs, off to a strong start
A new program that will help physicians, hospitals, and other health care providers work together to improve care for people with Medicare is off to a strong start, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) announced today. Under the new Medicare Shared Savings Program (Shared Savings Program), 27 Accountable Care Organizations (ACOs) have entered into agreements with CMS, taking responsibility for the quality of care furnished to people with Medicare in return for the opportunity to share in savings realized through improved care. CMS also announced today that five ACOs are participating in the Advance Payment ACO Model beginning April 1.
March 21, 2012
CMS Announces New Initiative to Bolster Primary Care Workforce
The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) today announced a call for applications for a new Affordable Care Act initiative designed to strengthen primary care in the United States. Under the Graduate Nurse Education Demonstration, CMS will provide hospitals working with nursing schools to train advanced practice registered nurses (APRNs) with payments of up to $200 million over four years to cover the costs of APRNs’ clinical training.
March 15, 2012
New Opportunity for Better Care for Nursing Facility Residents through Enhanced Coordination Efforts
CMS Announces New Initiative to Improve Care for Medicare-Medicaid enrollees and Reduce Costly and Avoidable Hospitalizations
The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) today announced the Initiative to Reduce Avoidable Hospitalizations among Nursing Facility Residents, a new effort designed to improve care for people living in nursing facilities who are enrolled in Medicare and Medicaid. The initiative aims to reduce costly and avoidable hospitalizations among nursing facility residents by funding organizations that would partner with nursing facilities to provide enhanced on-site services and supports to nursing facility residents. CMS commits up to $128 million to support a diverse portfolio of these evidence-based interventions.
- Press Release
- Solicitation (PDF)
- Initiative to Reduce Avoidable Hospitalizations among Nursing Facility Residents
March 14, 2012
CMS Continues Effort to Improve Quality of Care for People with Medicare
New Partners Named in Efforts to Improve Transitions between the Hospital and Other Care Settings
The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) announced 23 additional participants in the Community-based Care Transitions Program (CCTP). These participants will join seven other community-based organizations already working with local hospitals and other health care and social service providers to support high-risk Medicare patients in maintaining the healing process as they transition from hospital stays to home, a nursing home, or other care setting.
March 13, 2012
Affordable Care Act Demonstration to Expand Access to Emergency Psychiatric Care
The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) today announced that 11 States and the District of Columbia will participate in the Medicaid Emergency Psychiatric Demonstration, established under the Affordable Care Act to test whether Medicaid beneficiaries who are experiencing a psychiatric emergency get more immediate, appropriate care when institutions for mental diseases (IMDs) receive Medicaid reimbursement.
February 8, 2012
Obama Administration Launches Initiative to Give Newborns and Mothers a "Strong Start"
The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) announced the launch of Strong Start, a new initiative to improve care and outcomes for mothers and newborns. This initiative will support mothers and their health providers in achieving healthy birth outcomes and test new models in Medicaid for enhanced prenatal care.
January 26, 2012
Report: One Year of Innovation: Taking Action to Improve Care and Reduce Costs
The Obama Administration released a new report today highlighting the success of the Center for Medicare and Medicaid Innovation. Created by the Affordable Care Act, the Innovation Center has already worked to test and support innovative new health care models that can reduce costs and strengthen the quality of health care.
January 3, 2012
Healthcare Professionals Selected for the New Innovation Advisors Program to Improve Care for Patients
The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) announced that it has selected 73 individuals across 27 States and the District of Columbia for its Innovation Advisors program. The initiative, launched by the CMS Innovation Center in October 2011, will enable health professionals to enhance skills that will ultimately drive improvements to care for patients, and at the same time reduce costs in communities nationwide.