AHA Fears Tightening of Antitrust Restrictions Regarding ACOs

On January 3, the AHA noted in a response to a public request for comment that it was disappointed (PDF) in a little-noticed announcement from the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) that it planned to tighten some ACO fraud-and-abuse waivers by narrowing legal definitions after two years of experience with the program.

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Source: Modern Healthcare

The AHA urged CMS to declare that it would only make material changes to the rules after a public notice-and-comment period. “ACOs should not be at risk for changes to the rules through obscure or little noticed issuances,” the AHA letter said.

Although observers roundly praised federal officials for loosening the antitrust and abuse rules on accountable care organizations (ACOs), the American Hospital Association (AHA) is protesting what it says are efforts by regulators to move back toward stricter enforcement over time.