Vizient shares comments with CMS on the FY 2026 IPPS Proposed Rule

IRVING, Texas, June 10, 2025 — Vizient® today submitted comments to the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) on the Fiscal Year (FY) 2026 Inpatient Prospective Payment System (IPPS) Proposed Rule. Vizient’s feedback addresses several key areas, including concerns with the proposed payment rate update, opportunities to reduce administrative burdens, and recommendations to improve the Transforming Episode Accountability Model (TEAM).

In our comments, Vizient emphasized that the proposed market basket does not adequately reflect rising costs for hospitals and urged CMS to provide greater transparency around the factors used in its calculation.

“While we appreciate CMS’s efforts to update payments for FY 2026, the proposed increases fall short, particularly given the rapidly evolving and looming policy changes related to tariffs and Medicaid, and the rising cost of care,” said Shoshana Krilow, senior vice president of public policy and government relations for Vizient. “Inadequate reimbursement only deepens the financial strain hospitals are already under and risks compromising both access to care and patient outcomes across the country.”

In addition to payment concerns, Vizient highlighted the need to reduce provider burden by removing chart-abstracted quality measures from quality programs and encouraged the agency’s efforts to develop measures that can be more seamlessly reported. Additionally, Vizient encouraged CMS to raise the 25-diagnosis code limit on inpatient claims, noting that allowing hospitals to report additional relevant codes would improve data quality, reduce administrative burden, and better capture patient acuity.

Vizient also weighed in on CMS’s proposed updates to the TEAM model, reiterating a prior recommendation that participation be voluntary. Vizient further urged CMS to allow greater flexibility in episode selection so that providers can focus their efforts on where they are best aligned with patient needs and community priorities.

Learn more about Vizient's advocacy and public policy efforts.

About Vizient, Inc.
Vizient, Inc., the nation's largest provider-driven healthcare performance improvement company, serves more than 65% of the nation's acute care providers, including 97% of the nation's academic medical centers, and more than 35% of the non-acute market. The Vizient contract portfolio represents $140 billion in annual purchasing volume enabling the delivery of cost-effective, high-value care. With its acquisition of Kaufman Hall in 2024, Vizient expanded its advisory services to help providers achieve financial, strategic, clinical and operational excellence. Headquartered in Irving, Texas, Vizient has offices throughout the United States. Learn more at www.vizientinc.com.