November 28, 2025
What’s new: The CMS Innovation Center is launching the Rapid Cycle Innovation Program, partnering with model participants to administer rapid randomized controlled trials (RRCTs) that focus on real health outcomes; instead of just managing symptoms with care as usual, this initiative puts patients first, using an evidence-based approach to health by quickly identifying strategies that empower patients, improve outcomes, and lower costs for everyone.
Why it matters: RRCTs apply the gold standard of evidence generation on a rapid timeline, enabling the Center to quickly pinpoint specific care delivery strategies that empower patients and providers to drive clinical success in months rather than years; by sharing these insights widely, we’ll support prevention across the system and keep people healthier.
What to expect: The first two Rapid Cycle Innovation Program tests include participants from the ACO REACH and Kidney Care Choices models to answer two simple but powerful questions, insights from which will help providers across the care continuum engage patients and families more effectively, support prevention, and reduce chronic disease: How can providers change patient outreach to improve receipt of preventive care? and How can providers improve patient follow-up after discharge to keep patients from having to return to the hospital?
The big picture: The Rapid Cycle Innovation Program is about action and results. It delivers usable data that help providers in CMMI models move swiftly to apply best practices for building healthier lives; patients and families stay at the center, empowered to make choices that keep them well, not just treated when they’re sick.
Additional details:
RRCTs apply the gold standard of evidence generation on a rapid timeframe, generating results in months rather than years. The Rapid Cycle Innovation Program is a voluntary program in which model participants may administer RRCTs with guidance, support and tools from the Innovation Center. The program is administered in addition to traditional model evaluation design and learning activities. The program will help advance model participants’ capacities to run their own RRCTs in the future to meet their own individual goals.
Model participants taking part in the first two RCIP tests are Carolina Kidney Partners, CINQCARE, Genuine Health Group, Kidney Specialists of Southern Nevada, NeueHealth, Nephrology Associates of Northern Illinois and Indiana, RenalCare Associates, Southwestern Health Resources, and The Kidney Experts.
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