CMMI Halts Start of the Seriously Ill Population (SIP) Payment Model

The Seriously Ill Population model (SIP), an alternative payment for the care of Medicare beneficiaries living with serious illness, which was slated to begin operations on April 1, 2021, is now “under review.” SIP was to operate as part of the Center for Medicare and Medicaid Innovation (CMMI) Primary Care First model, which pays a fixed amount per enrolled beneficiary each month to cover the responsible practice’s patient care. No additional information – including whether the SIP model will proceed at all – is being made available at this time.