Policymakers Heed AAFP’s Call to Bolster Primary Care Practices and Improve Competition

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: Thursday, June 8, 2023 

Contact: 
Julie Hirschhorn
Manager, Public Relations 
jhirschhorn@aafp.org

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Action today from the Senate Finance Committee and the Center for Medicare and Medicaid Innovation (CMMI) signals that federal policymakers and regulatory leaders recognize that a strong primary care foundation is essential to a high-performing health care system.

This morning, R. Shawn Martin, the American Academy of Family Physicians’ (AAFP) executive vice president and CEO, testified before the Senate Finance Committee during its hearing, “Consolidation and Corporate Ownership in Health Care: Trends and Impacts on Access, Quality, and Costs.” Martin outlined how accelerating consolidation and decades of underinvestment in primary care have undermined the delivery of and access to comprehensive, longitudinal primary care in the U.S.

“Primary care is at its best when it is in service to patients and communities, not the interest of institutions or corporations,” said Martin. “Unsustainable physician payment rates, overwhelming administrative burdens, workforce shortages and misaligned incentives are undermining community-based primary care, despite strong evidence that increasing primary care investment improves patient and population health, reduces health care costs and advances health equity.” 

To slow consolidation and truly support physician practices, Martin outlined in his testimony that Congress must address the administrative requirements that take physicians away from the important work of caring for patients, bolster the primary care workforce and realign incentives to directly support physician practices.  He also highlighted steps to increase investment in primary care through the advancement of innovative payment and delivery models, including value-based payment that supports the delivery of patient-centered primary care. 

Martin’s testimony coincided with the release of a new primary care payment model from CMMI: Making Care Primary, a state-based multi-payer model which will support primary care practices in the transition to prospective value-based payment. This is essential to the sustainability of independent practice – especially given the unprecedented consolidation primary care is experiencing. 

Meaningful practice transformation requires significant upfront investment, works best when multiple payers are involved and takes time. The AAFP commends CMMI for recognizing these important aspects of primary care transformation by making its newest model a 10-year transformation and selecting the eight states in which the model will be implemented based on strong alignment with the state Medicaid program. These aspects of the new model build on the learnings derived from many transformation models, including Comprehensive Primary Care and Comprehensive Primary Care Plus. 

“While details of the model are still forthcoming, family physicians are pleased to see that many aspects of CMMI’s new model reflect several of the recommendations for value-based primary care that the AAFP has been sharing with CMMI for several years,” said Martin. “It’s important to recognize that these efforts reflect increased investment in primary care and value-based care, which ultimately enables practices to innovate and improve patient and population outcomes.” 

The AAFP appreciates federal policymakers acknowledging the value of primary care and the potentially harmful impacts of unchecked consolidation on patient access and health care costs. Ensuring that all primary care practices can remain competitive, including independent practices that are essential in meeting the needs of many underserved populations, requires meaningful change. 

Family physicians continue to urge Congress to enact legislation that provides practices of all types and sizes with a level playing field. This includes substantive Medicare physician payment reform and site-neutral payment policies that will eliminate the existing incentives for potentially harmful consolidation and benefit patients with reduced cost sharing. 

The AAFP looks forward to working with the nation’s health leaders to transform our health care system from one focused on sick care to one that focuses on improving the health of patients and entire communities by investing in a strong primary care foundation. 

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