500 Practices Selected for Primary Care Demo

WASHINGTON --  More than 2,000 physicians and health professionals will care for Medicare, Medicaid and private plan beneficiaries under the same new payment model aimed at coordinating care and keeping patients healthy to avoid costly admissions for inpatient care.

Roughly 500 physician practices in seven regions spread out over eight states successfully applied to participate in the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services-led comprehensive primary care initiative. Doctors will receive as much as $40 per high-risk patient per month to support care coordination and wellness programs. Practices that keep health spending below expenditure targets will share in the savings, but those that do not meet expectations might be asked to leave the project.