Rural Health
News by Topic: Outpatient care
CMS: Medicare Program; Announcement of the Advisory Panel on Hospital Outpatient Payment Meeting-August 24, 2026
Federal Register
Jul 8, 2026 - The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) will
hold a virtual meeting of the Advisory Panel on Hospital
Outpatient Payment on August 24, 2026. The purpose of the
Panel is to advise the Secretary on the clinical integrity
of the Ambulatory Payment Classification groups and their
associated weights, which are major elements of the
Medicare Hospital Outpatient Prospective Payment System and
the Ambulatory Surgical Center payment system, and
supervision of hospital outpatient therapeutic services.
The agenda and information on how to join the meeting will
be posted on the
Panel's website. Presentations and comment letters are
due by July 31, 2026.
Source: Federal Register
Jul 7, 2026 - Notice of a proposed rule from the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) making changes to the Medicare Hospital Outpatient Prospective Payment System (OPPS) and the Medicare Ambulatory Surgical Center (ASC) payment system for calendar year 2027, including changes to the amounts and factors used to determine the payment rates for Medicare services paid under the OPPS and those paid under the ASC payment systems. Among other things, this rule also proposes updates related to the requirements for the Hospital Outpatient Quality Reporting Program and Ambulatory Surgical Center Quality Reporting Program; requests information regarding potential approaches to improve comparability and standardization of the HPT information reported in machine-readable files and consumer-friendly displays, particularly for complex contracting methodologies; and announces notices of closure of teaching hospitals and opportunities to apply for available slots. Comments are due by August 31, 2026.
Source: Federal Register