Findings from Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine Provide New Insights into Managed Care (The Medicare TEAM Model: A Strategic Guide for Orthopaedic Surgeons): Managed Care

2026 APR 08 (NewsRx) -- By a News Reporter-Staff News Editor at Insurance Daily News -- Current study results on Managed Care have been published. According to news originating from Chicago, Illinois, by NewsRx correspondents, research stated, “ The Medicare Transforming Episode Accountability Model (TEAM) is a 5-year payment model that started on January 1, 2026, with mandatory participation from >700 U.S. hospitals in 5 surgery categories, 3 of which are orthopaedic. The TEAM encompasses a specified operation from the day of the admission or outpatient procedure to 30 days after discharge, with payment based on a hospital-specific target price that is adjusted for hospital demographic characteristics and a Composite Quality Score multiplier.”

Our news journalists obtained a quote from the research from the Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine, “Although hospitals hold the financial risk and benefit, orthopaedic surgeons will drive the TEAM’s success, making their strategic engagement with leadership essential. Robust data infrastructure, along with timely collection and analysis, forms the foundation for the TEAM implementation and compliance.”

According to the news editors, the research concluded: “Many hospitals are unprepared for the TEAM, and the inclusion of high-variability procedures, such as the surgical treatment of hip and femoral fractures and spinal fusion, heightens financial risk, underscoring the need for a clear strategic framework and orthopaedic surgeon leadership.”

This research has been peer-reviewed.

For more information on this research see: The Medicare TEAM Model: A Strategic Guide for Orthopaedic Surgeons. Journal of Bone and Joint Surgery, 2026. Journal of Bone and Joint Surgery can be contacted at: Lippincott Williams & Wilkins, Two Commerce Sq, 2001 Market St, Philadelphia, PA 19103, USA.

The news correspondents report that additional information may be obtained from David Kalainov, Dept. of Orthopaedic Surgery, Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine, Chicago, Illinois. Additional authors for this research include Abhinav R. Balu, Adam Edelstein, Srikanth Divi, Jason E. Simon and Caroline Thirukumaran.

The direct object identifier (DOI) for that additional information is: https://doi.org/10.2106/jbjs.25.01084. This DOI is a link to an online electronic document that is either free or for purchase, and can be your direct source for a journal article and its citation.

The publisher’s contact information for the Journal of Bone and Joint Surgery is: Lippincott Williams & Wilkins, Two Commerce Sq, 2001 Market St, Philadelphia, PA 19103, USA.

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