CMS Launches MAHA ELEVATE: $100 Million for Whole-Person Chronic Care

Scope

The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) Innovation Center has announced the Make America Healthy Again: Enhancing Lifestyle and Evaluating Value-Based Approaches Through Evidence (MAHA ELEVATE) model. This $100 million initiative is designed to test evidence-based, whole-person functional and lifestyle medicine (FLM) interventions. The program aims to strengthen the evidence base for services that address the root causes of illness rather than just symptom management.

Interventions must focus on foundational pillars such as nutrition, physical activity, sleep hygiene, and stress management. The necessity of these behavioral changes is supported by peer-reviewed research; for instance, microsimulation studies have demonstrated that improved dietary quality leads to significant long-term health improvements and reduced healthcare expenditures (Herman et al., 2022, Public Health Nutrition, 25(5), 1265-1273).

Eligibility

Eligible applicants include any organization capable of meeting the requirements outlined in the NOFO. CMS is seeking a diverse range of participants, including:

Private medical practices

Health systems and Accountable Care Organizations (ACOs)

Academic organizations

Federally Qualified Health Centers (FQHCs) and Rural Health Clinics (RHCs)

Local and state governments

Partnership

While applicants are not required to be clinical entities, they must demonstrate clinical oversight to ensure beneficiary safety. CMS strongly encourages non-clinical organizations, such as community-based organizations, to form partnerships with clinical entities to satisfy the model’s operational and data management requirements. These collaborations are essential for recruiting the minimum required beneficiary sample sizes needed for statistical evaluation.

Key Deadlines:

Application Deadline: Friday, May 15, 2026

Expected Award Date: October 2026

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