The National Alliance for Caregiving (NAC), through its Act on RAISE Campaign and Cancer Caregiving Collaborative coalitions, responds to the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services’ (CMS) Calendar Year (CY) 2026 Physician Fee Schedule (PFS) Proposed Rule, calling on CMS to build on recent progress and ensure Medicare payment policies reflect the essential role of family caregivers and community-based supports.
This builds on NAC’s ongoing work to strengthen Medicare’s support for family caregivers through improved payment and innovation. The CY2026 rule includes modest updates to Caregiver Training Services (CTS) and Community Health Integration (CHI), as well as a request for information that could determine how Medicare addresses chronic disease prevention and upstream health factors that impact family caregivers in coming years.
“We’re encouraged by the progress CMS is making to recognize the vital contributions of our nation’s family caregivers to our health care system. However, with the number of family caregivers continuing to grow rapidly, we need to accelerate these efforts,” said Jason Resendez, President & CEO of the National Alliance for Caregiving. “The CY2026 rule presents an important opportunity for CMS to expand its investment in the people who make our health care system work.”
In partnership with more than 50 organizations nationwide, NAC has outlined the following priorities for CMS action:
- Make CTS a permanent telehealth benefit under Medicare.
- Align CTS billing requirements with other therapeutic interventions to reduce provider barriers.
- Expand opportunities for community-based organizations to deliver and bill for CTS.
- Incorporate caregiver support and other evidence-based interventions into current and future Medicare codes and Innovation Center models.
- Provide technical assistance to providers implementing CTS, addressing real and perceived barriers.
- Carefully evaluate the proposed elimination of the Social Determinants of Health (SDOH) assessment as a billable service to avoid unintended harm to beneficiaries and families.
NAC and its partners remain committed to advancing policies that recognize and support the nation’s more than 63 million family caregivers, ensuring that their contributions are valued within Medicare and across the health system.
- Read the Act on Raise Campaign Letter here.
- Read the Cancer Caregiving Collaborative Letter here.
