Vermont announces Next Generation Medicaid Program

Gov. Phil Scott last week announced the Next Generation Medicaid Program, which will test a Medicaid accountable care organization model as part of the recently launched Vermont All-Payer ACO Model. Under the one-year Medicaid agreement, OneCare Vermont will contract with the Department of Vermont Health Access to provide an array of services to about 30,000 Medicaid beneficiaries on a prospective payment schedule. Participating providers include four hospitals as well as federally qualified health centers, independent practices and home health providers. Jeff Tieman, president and CEO of the Vermont Association of Hospitals and Health Systems, said the care coordination initiative “represents an important next step in transforming our care and payment delivery system for Vermonters. With this announcement, hospitals will begin moving toward a system that pays for quality and focuses on improving health outcomes. The All-Payer Model is a patient-centered approach that we believe has great potential to provide Vermonters with more affordable, holistic, high quality care.”