STAT+: A major insurer on how it may replicate Medicare’s chronic-care experiment — SkimNews
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- Blue Shield of California has committed to adopting payment models inspired by the Medicare Innovation Center's ACCESS Model, joining 16 other major health plans in the effort.
- Ravi Kavasery, Blue Shield of California's chief medical officer, told STAT the insurer is still determining whether to adopt CMS payment amounts and which organizations to partner with.
- The plan serves 6 million members and expects to launch similar chronic-care payment models in its commercial plans in 2027.
Why it matters: Blue Shield of California covers 6 million commercial members, and a 2027 launch would mark one of the first major private extensions of the federal ACCESS Model's chronic-care payment approach beyond Medicare — though key questions on CMS payment alignment and partner organizations remain unresolved.
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