Washington state hospitals say their Medicare patients are waiting two to four times longer in some cases for procedures that are now subject to prior authorization under a new Medicare program.  The report from Sen. Maria Cantwell (D-Wash.) is among the first to document alleged patient harm stemming from the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services’ new Wasteful and Inappropriate Service Reduction, or WISeR, Model.
Cantwell is one of several Democratic members of Congress who have been urging CMS to scrap the program, which launched Jan. 1.  Cantwell aired her concerns about WISeR to Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F.
Kennedy Jr. at a Senate Committee on Finance hearing Wednesday.
She said CMS is using artificial intelligence as a “denial device” and that patients are waiting weeks to get sign off for services that previously didn’t require approval.  Continue to STAT+ to read the full story...
Washington state hospitals report that Medicare beneficiaries are experiencing longer waits for procedures now requiring prior authorization under a new Medicare program.
A report by Senator Maria Cantwell is presented as initial documentation of patient harm allegedly linked to the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services’ (CMS) WISeR Model.
This item summarizes a policy report and congressional testimony rather than a peer‑reviewed study.
The WISeR Model launched on January 1; Cantwell’s report and remarks were discussed at a Senate Committee on Finance hearing on a Wednesday (date not specified in source).
The accounts cited involve Medicare patients in hospitals in Washington state.
No broader national prevalence data are provided in the source.
The WISeR Model implements prior authorization for certain services and incorporates artificial‑intelligence tools in CMS’s review processes, according to the source’s characterization.