Traditional Medicare plan holders have typically not had to wait for prior authorization before receiving medical treatment. CMS recently announced a new program to test prior authorization requirements for certain services in six states to root out fraud, waste and abuse. Jeffrey Marr highlights what’s needed to set up a well-functioning prior authorization system.
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Center for Advancing Health Policy through Research
Jeffrey Marr Ph.D.
Assistant Professor of Health Services, Policy & Practice
Biography
Dr. Marr is an Assistant Professor of Health Services, Policy, and Practice at the Brown University School of Public Health. Professor Marr is a health economist who studies health care markets using quasi-experimental methods and administrative data. His research focuses on private health insurance and the Medicare program. He received his PhD in health economics and policy from Johns Hopkins University.
Recent News
This news article highlights CMS’s new pilot introducing prior authorization in Traditional Medicare across six states starting January 2026, aimed at curbing fraud and waste for select procedures such as knee arthroscopy and skin substitutes. Jeffrey Marr, a health economist at Brown University, noted that while the model could help reduce wasteful spending, linking contractor payments to savings “creates an incentive for participants to deny a high share of services,” potentially discouraging needed, high-value care.
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