The U.S. Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services indicated it will act on a previous proposal to terminate the Treatment Choices Model for ESRD at the end of the current calendar year because of a failure of the program to deliver on the promised efficiencies and improvement in outcomes.
The final Medicare coverage memo for transcatheter edge-to-edge repair for tricuspid valve regurgitation largely replicates the April 2025 draft, but cardiology centers will not have to bring an electrophysiologist to the patient’s care team to be permitted to practice these devices.
The U.S. Office of Inspector General issued a report stating the Medicare program often pays for physician services that are not performed post-surgery, but the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services responded it is in no position to immediately begin tracking all excess payments under these global codes.
