ANCOR Submits Comments on Access Rule – Thank You to Advocates Who Joined Us

ANCOR wishes to thank the over 265 members who joined us in submitting comments to the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) on the agency’s proposal to rescind the 2015 “Access Rule.” Together we submitted over 20% of the total comments! The rule requires accountability in the Medicaid program to be able to provide sufficient access to the program for individuals served (e.g. think adequate provider rates, etc.). While the rule does not include the Home and Community-Based Services (HCBS) program, which assists individuals with disabilities in living in the community instead of state-run institutions, the proposal was accompanied by a request by CMS to think about new ways to measure access. In response, ANCOR’s comments highlighted the need for guidance on access monitoring for HCBS waivers.

ANCOR’s full comments are available here. Readers interested in learning more might be interested in our Access and Adequacy report, which we submitted to the record for CMS alongside our comments. ANCOR also signed onto comments submitted by our large disability coalition, CCD, and those can be found here.