Join the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) to learn more about the recently launched Guiding an Improved Dementia Experience (GUIDE) Model.
Thursday, August 10, 2023 | 1:00 – 2:00 pm (CT)
This new voluntary model aims to improve the quality of life for people living with dementia, reduce strain on unpaid caregivers and help people remain in their homes and communities through a package of care coordination and management, caregiver education and support and respite services. Delivering equitable care and addressing health disparities in dementia are crucial aspects of the GUIDE Model.
Despite its prevalence, many people living with dementia do not consistently receive high-quality, coordinated care. As a result, they experience poor outcomes, including high rates of hospitalization, emergency department visits, and post-acute care utilization. They also experience high rates of depression, behavioral and psychological symptoms of dementia, and poor management of other co-occurring conditions.
Dementia also significantly impacts the family and other unpaid caregivers, who often provide significant amounts of assistance with personal care, finance, household and medication management, clinical coordination, and other care. Many caregivers for people living with dementia, who are often Medicare beneficiaries themselves, report high levels of stress and depression, which negatively affect their overall health and increase their risk for serious illness, hospitalization, and mortality.
Through the GUIDE Model, CMS will test an alternative payment for participants that deliver key supportive services to people with dementia, including comprehensive, person-centered assessments and care plans, care coordination, and 24/7 access to a support line.
The GUIDE Model aims to address the key drivers of poor-quality dementia care in five ways:
- Defining a standardized approach to dementia care delivery for model participants – this includes staffing considerations, services for beneficiaries and their unpaid caregivers, and quality standards.
- Providing an alternative payment methodology to model participants – CMS will provide a monthly per-beneficiary payment to support a team-based collaborative care approach.
- Addressing unpaid caregiver needs – the model will aim to address the burden experienced by unpaid caregivers by requiring model participants to provide caregiver training and support services, including 24/7 access to a support line, as well as connections to community-based providers.
- Respite services – CMS will pay model participants for respite services, which are temporary services provided to a beneficiary in their home, at an adult day center, or at a facility that can provide 24-hour care for the purpose of giving the unpaid caregiver temporary breaks from their caregiving responsibilities.
- Screening for Health-Related Social Needs – model participants will be required to screen beneficiaries for psychosocial needs and health-related social needs (HRSNs) and help navigate them to local, community-based organizations to address these needs.
“HHS continues to innovate to help Americans living with dementia and their unpaid caregivers. Our new GUIDE Model has the potential to improve the quality of life for people with dementia and alleviate the significant strain on our families,” said HHS Secretary Xavier Becerra. “We are proud to take these steps to deliver on the President’s promise to increase care coordination and improve access to services and supports for our families.”
CMS is accepting letters of interest for the model through September 15, 2023 and will release a GUIDE Request for Applications this fall.
Additional Information
- GUIDE Model Press Release
- GUIDE Model Fact Sheet (PDF)
- GUIDE Model Frequently Asked Questions
- GUIDE Model Letter of Interest
- GUIDE Model Dementia Pathways Infographic (PDF)
- Webinar: GUIDE Model Overview Webinar (August 10, 2023) – Registration open