In February 2014, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) announced it would consider additional health care organizations for participation in its Bundled Payments for Care Improvement (BPCI) initiative.  CMS’ continued support for this initiative clearly suggests that policy makers believe bundled payments holds promise for managing costs and improving quality.  Private payers have also supported bundled payments as a way to contain healthcare costs.

Providers, however, have been slower to experiment with bundled payments. Aside from the nearly 300 organizations currently enrolled in the BPCI pilot programs, the other 90% of hospitals in the U.S. are getting ready, thinking about it, or resisting this trend all together.