§ 417.596 Establishment of a benefit stabilization fund.

(a) General. If an HMO or CMP is required to provide its Medicare enrollees with additional benefits as described in § 417.592, the organization may request that CMS withhold a part of its monthly per capita payment in a benefit stabilization fund. The fund will be used to prevent excessive fluctuation in the provision of those additional benefits in subsequent contract periods. (b) Notification to CMS. An HMO's or CMP's request to have monies withheld in a benefit stabilization fund must be made when the HMO or CMP notifies CMS under § 417.592(d) of its ACR and its APCRP in preparation for its next contract period. (c) Limitations on the amounts withheld—(1) Limit per contract period. Except as provided in paragraph (c)(3) of this section, CMS does not withhold in a benefit stabilization fund more than 15 percent of the difference between an HMO's or CMP's ACR and its ACPRP for a given contract period. (2) Cumulative limit. If CMS has established a benefit stabilization fund for an HMO or CMP, it does not approve a request for withholding made by that HMO or CMP for a subsequent contract period that would cause the total value of the benefit stabilization fund to exceed 25 percent of the difference between the HMO's or CMP's ACR and the average of its per capita rates of payment for that subsequent contract period. (3) Exception. CMS may grant an exception to the limit described in paragraph (c)(1) of this section if an HMO or CMP can demonstrate to CMS's satisfaction that the value of the additional benefits it provides to its Medicare enrollees fluctuates substantially in excess of 15 percent from one contract period to another. (d) Financial management of benefit stabilization funds. (1) The amounts withheld by CMS to establish and maintain a benefit stabilization fund are in the custody of the Federal Health Insurance Trust Fund and the Federal Supplementary Medical Insurance Trust Fund. (2) The amounts withheld in a benefit stabilization fund are accounted for by CMS in accounts in which interest does not accrue to the HMO or CMP.