Payers and providers are both highly motivated to keep their members and patients healthy, but amid numerous challenges—not the least of which was the major disruption to primary care caused by the COVID-19 pandemic—adoption of value-based payment arrangements to promote better care continues to be more of a trickle than a flood. According to a , 97% of physicians rely on fee-for-service payments or salary, while only 36% draw some form of compensation from value-based payments. Also troubling: the same study found that less than half of respondents (46%) follow the clinical pathways adopted by their organization.

The COVID-19 pandemic led to a 32% average drop in revenue for physician practices as primary care visits plummeted, of 3,500 providers. Therefore, while the pandemic’s short-term challenges may have stalled adoption of value-based partnerships, now is an ideal time for payers to make the case to their provider networks that such arrangements will benefit them significantly in the long term while improving outcomes for their patients.