CMS sets July end date for CHOPD program

WASHINGTON – CMS has announced that payments under the Accelerated and Advance Payment (AAP) Program for the Change Healthcare/Optum Payment Disruption (CHOPD) will conclude on July 12, 2024.  

Launched in early March, the CHOPD payments were designed to ease cash flow disruptions experienced by some Medicare providers and suppliers, such as hospitals, physicians and pharmacists, due to the unprecedented cyberattack that took health care electronic data interchange Change Healthcare offline in February.  

“In the face of one of the most widespread cyberattacks on the U.S. health care industry, CMS promptly took action to get providers and suppliers access to the funds they needed to continue providing patients with vital care,” said CMS Administrator Chiquita Brooks-LaSure. “Our efforts helped minimize the disruptive fallout from this incident, and we will remain vigilant to be ready to address future events.” 

CHOPD accelerated payments have been issued to more than 4,200 Part A providers, totaling more than $2.55 billion; CMS also issued 4,722 CHOPD advance payments, totaling more than $717.18 million, to Part B suppliers. 

CMS will continue to monitor for other effects of the cyberattack on Medicare providers and will continue to engage industry partners to address any remaining issues or concerns. CMS encourages all providers of services and suppliers, technology vendors, and other members of the health care ecosystem to double down on cybersecurity, with urgency. Please visit the HPH Cyber Performance Goals website at https://hphcyber.hhs.gov/performance-goals.html for more details on steps to stay protected. 

The Change Cyberattack had a widespread impact. 

• HME providers bore the brunt. 

• Software companies scrambled to protect customers.