CJR-X CONNECT
The final rule is here. Now the work starts.
CMS has finalized CJR-X as the newest mandatory, nationwide episode-based payment model in Medicare. CJR-X Connect is your hub for navigating it. Built for hospital leaders, bringing together forward-thinking professionals to help you succeed in value-based care payment models.
Who Should Join?
Hospital Executives
driving innovation in value-based care.
Specialists
advancing their practices through bundled payment participation.
ACO Leaders
utilizing episode bundles to improve outcomes and manage costs.
CIN Administrators
seeking data-driven strategies for successful collaboration.
CMS Finalizes CJR-X
On July 31, 2026, CMS issued the FY 2027 Inpatient Prospective Payment System and Long-Term Care Hospital PPS Final Rule (CMS-1849-F), finalizing the Comprehensive Care for Joint Replacement Expanded (CJR-X) Model.
For most acute care hospitals in the country, accountability for lower extremity joint replacement episodes is no longer a proposal to comment on. It's a compliance and financial reality with a date attached.
Key facts at a glance
Start date: January 1, 2028 - moved back from the proposed October 1, 2027
Participation: Mandatory and nationwide for hospitals paid under both IPPS and OPPS
Exemptions: TEAM participants, hospitals in Maryland, and hospitals not paid under both IPPS and OPPS
Procedures: Hip, knee, and ankle replacements - inpatient and hospital outpatient settings
Episode: The procedure through 90 days post-discharge
Risk: CMS declined requests for an upside-only first performance year
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More to Come
Our team is working through the final rule now, including the changes CMS made from the April proposal including start date, risk methodology, quality scoring, and the safety net and rural protections.
A full CJR-X Connect update is in development, including a redesigned resource center, a detailed breakdown of the final rule, and member programming built around the January 2028 start. Watch this space over the coming weeks.
Members will be the first to receive it.
Providers & Members Join at no cost | Corporate memberships
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