BALTIMORE, MD – In a significant move to improve health equity and outcomes across the state, the Maryland Department of Health, in partnership with the Maryland Health Services Cost Review Commission, has applied to participate in the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services’ (CMS) States Advancing All-Payer Health Equity Approaches and Development Model. This initiative aims to reinforce Maryland’s ongoing efforts to elevate the overall health and well-being of its residents.
Dr. Laura Herrera Scott, Maryland Department of Health Secretary, underscored the model’s importance as a continuum of the state’s enduring commitment to enhancing health care quality, outcomes, and equity, all while maintaining control over cost growth. “This opportunity allows Maryland to bridge the health care, population health, and social sectors as well as the public and private sectors to implement the solutions Marylanders need, as identified by community members themselves,” she explained.
Maryland’s unique hospital payment system, in place since the 1970s, coupled with its experience from the All-Payer Model (2014-2018) and the Total Cost of Care Model (2019-present), positions the state advantageously for this application. The proposed model focuses on setting hospital quality standards, advancing primary care programs, enhancing population health, and employing hospital global budgets to manage costs effectively.
By leveraging the model’s tools, Maryland aims to promote health equity, ensure high-value care, and improve care access, with infrastructure investments supporting workforce development, administrative simplification for health care providers, and advancements in health information technology, data, and analytics.
Jon Kromm, Executive Director of the Maryland Health Services Cost Review Commission, highlighted the model’s role in continuing Maryland’s all-payer hospital rate-setting authority. “The model offers tools for primary care transformation, health care cost containment, and population health improvement,” Kromm stated.
Central to the new model is the development of a State Health Equity Plan, emphasizing community involvement in defining health commitments, integrating resources across clinical and population health needs, and addressing systemic racial and ethnic health inequities.
Maryland’s application seeks funding for various initiatives, including the establishment of five regional community-based population health hubs, community grants for population health and social needs, and technology for statewide health-related social needs screening and referral.
To prepare the application, the Maryland Department of Health and the Health Services Cost Review Commission convened three advisory committees focusing on population health and equity, primary care, and health care delivery transformation. Maryland anticipates CMS will make a decision on the application this summer, with policy development and decision-making for the model expected to begin in July 2024, leading to a contractual agreement execution in July 2025 and implementation in 2026.
Maryland remains dedicated to engaging with key partners and the public throughout the planning and implementation phases of this strategy. More information on the States Advancing All-Payer Health Equity Approaches and Development Model can be found on the CMS website.
