CJR Annual Report Shows Net Savings

The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services’ (CMS) Center for Medicare & Medicaid Innovation (CMMI) has released their second annual report on the Comprehensive Care for Joint Replacement (CJR) model. The report finds that “after two performance years, average episode payments decreased by 3.7 percent or $146 million, predominantly by changing post-acute care use.” It goes on to project that the net savings for the CJR model, which started as a completely mandatory model through random metropolitan statistical areas and then moved to a mix of mandatory and volunteer participation, could be $17.4 million after accounting for reconciliation payments earned by participants. CMS reports that 77% of participant hospitals earned reconciliation payments. For more information, read the summary and the full annual report.