CMS Releases Preliminary Ambulatory Specialty Model (ASM) Participant List
6,637 clinicians identified for mandatory ASM participation in 2027. What the preliminary list means, key statistics, and what to do next.
CMS has published the preliminary participant list for the Ambulatory Specialty Model, identifying 6,637 clinicians across two condition cohorts for mandatory participation beginning January 2027.
Update, September 2026: CMS has since posted the final 2027 participant list to data.cms.gov. Our ASM Participant Lookup Tool now searches that final list of 5,556 clinicians (2,215 heart failure, 3,341 low back pain) by name, NPI, or organization.
What the List Shows
The CY2027 Preliminary ASM Participant List identifies individual clinicians (by name, NPI, state, condition cohort, and organization) who CMS has preliminarily determined meet the participation criteria for ASM. This is the first time CMS has named specific individuals rather than just geographic areas.
Key Statistics
| Metric | Count |
|---|---|
| Total preliminary participants | 6,637 |
| Heart Failure cohort | 2,610 |
| Low Back Pain cohort | 4,027 |
| Small practice participants | 2,361 (36%) |
| Unique organizations | ~2,600 |
| States represented | 49 |
Top States by Participant Count
| State | Participants |
|---|---|
| Texas | 1,121 |
| California | 644 |
| Florida | 643 |
| Georgia | 349 |
| New Jersey | 298 |
Preliminary Versus Final
The preliminary list was built from 2024 claims. For the final 2027 list, which CMS posted in September 2026, eligibility was rechecked against 2025 claims, and CMS said that recheck could only remove clinicians, not add them. Removal happened for the same reasons eligibility can change in any year:
- Episode volume dropped. Fewer than 20 attributed episodes in the lookback year takes you out for that performance year.
- Specialty determinations shifted. Your specialty is the code on the plurality of your Part B claims, so changes in billing patterns can affect eligibility.
Bottom line: If you were on the preliminary list, check the final CMS dataset before planning around 2027. If you weren't, you are not in ASM for 2027, but CMS rechecks eligibility every year and can add clinicians starting with the 2028 performance year, so a practice in a mandatory geographic area should keep watching its episode volume.
How This Relates to the Geographic Area List
In December 2025, CMS published the 235 mandatory geographic areas for ASM. That list told you whether your region was selected. This new participant list tells you whether you specifically have been identified based on claims data: your specialty, episode volume, and attribution patterns.
Being in a mandatory area was necessary but not sufficient. You also needed to meet specialty and volume thresholds. The participant list resolves that question for 6,637 clinicians.
What to Do Now
If you're on the list:
- Confirm you are still on the final 2027 list in the CMS dataset
- Review your current MIPS episode cost data; ASM scores the same episode-based cost measure, against the ASM cohort
- Understand your quality measure performance (especially Q005, Q008, Q236, Q492, Q377 for heart failure)
- Begin building collaborative care arrangements with primary care partners
- Check whether you're flagged as a small practice (eligible for +10 points, or +15 for solo practitioners)
If you're NOT on the list:
- ASM does not apply to you in 2027; keep reporting to MIPS if you are MIPS-eligible
- If your geographic area is mandatory, track your episode volume: 20 or more attributed episodes in 2026 could bring you into ASM for 2028
- The preparation work (cost visibility, quality optimization) also benefits your MIPS performance
Next Steps
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