Check Now! Are You on CMS’s Heart Failure Payment Model List?

“ASNC Members, it is critically important that you check the CMS website to see if you are included on the list of physicians assigned to the new heart failure reimbursement model. If you are on the list, the care you provide to heart failure patients can put all of your Medicare reimbursement up for a possible plus OR MINUS 9% adjustment.”

David E. Winchester, MD, MS, FASNC
Deputy Chair of ASNC’s Health Policy Committee

The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) has released a preliminary participant list for the Heart Failure Ambulatory Specialty Model (ASM), a mandatory 5-year payment model for heart failure care that launches Jan. 1, 2027. Cardiologists may be included if they –

• Bill under the Medicare Physician Fee Schedule,
• Practice in a targeted geographic area, and
• Have historically managed at least 20 heart failure episodes per year.

Participants will be evaluated across 4 categories (quality, cost, improvement activities, and interoperability), with all Medicare Part B payments subject to performance-based adjustments, ranging from ±9% in 2029 to ±12% by 2033.

Action Needed

Check the CMS database now to confirm whether you or your colleagues are included and verify that the information is accurate. The final participant list is expected later this year.

ASNC, with other cardiovascular societies, is monitoring implementation of the ASM and will provide resources to help members prepare. Members of cardiovascular societies who are included in the model are invited to join this list serv for updates.

ASM Participant List