Medicare Home Infusion Therapy Accreditation: Comparing URAC, ACHC, CHAP, and Other CMS-Approved Bodies
Six accrediting organizations hold CMS approval for the Medicare home infusion therapy benefit. Choosing the right one depends on your organization's existing accreditation relationships, payer mix, clinical focus, and operational maturity. This guide structures the decision.
Last updated: April 2026
What Is Medicare Home Infusion Therapy Supplier Accreditation?
Medicare Home Infusion Therapy (HIT) Supplier accreditation is the mandatory credential required for any organization seeking Medicare Part B reimbursement for professional services delivered to patients receiving infusion therapy in the home. The 21st Century Cures Act established this benefit and delegated CMS authority to approve accrediting organizations whose standards meet or exceed federal Conditions of Coverage. A supplier that is not accredited by one of these six CMS-approved bodies cannot bill Medicare for infusion nursing visits or training services under the home infusion benefit.
The Six CMS-Approved Accrediting Organizations
CMS has approved the following six organizations to accredit Medicare Home Infusion Therapy Suppliers. All six confer deemed status — meaning accreditation satisfies the CMS Conditions of Coverage without a separate federal survey.
URAC
Utilization Review Accreditation Commission
CMS approval through: March 27, 2030
Program name: Medicare Home Infusion Therapy Supplier (MHITS) Accreditation
Background: URAC is a national, nonprofit accrediting organization with a 30+ year history in healthcare quality standards. Its MHITS program is built around operational excellence, patient safety, and multidisciplinary care coordination — with standards that address both clinical and organizational governance.
Standards orientation: Risk management, consumer protection, complete care services, clinical protocols, quality management. Standards are structured to drive organizational-level improvement, not just compliance with a minimum floor.
Best fit for: Organizations with pharmacy or specialty pharmacy backgrounds, organizations already holding other URAC accreditations (specialty pharmacy, drug therapy management, PBM), and organizations that value URAC's standards-building reputation in the pharmacy and managed care space.
IHS depth: IHS is led by Thomas G. Goddard, JD, PhD, former Chief Operating Officer and General Counsel of URAC. No other consulting firm offers this depth of institutional knowledge of URAC's standards development, interpretation, and survey process.
ACHC
Accreditation Commission for Health Care
CMS approval: Ongoing (deemed status holder)
Program name: Home Infusion Therapy Accreditation
Background: ACHC is a nonprofit accrediting organization that has historically focused on home health, hospice, pharmacy, and DMEPOS providers. Its home infusion therapy program has a substantial market presence among community and specialty pharmacies.
Standards orientation: ACHC's HIT standards emphasize clinical care delivery, pharmacy services, nursing services, and patient/caregiver education. The standards are organized around the patient care episode and the pharmacy-to-bedside service model.
Best fit for: Organizations already accredited by ACHC for pharmacy or DMEPOS services, community pharmacies expanding into home infusion, and organizations whose payer contracts specifically reference ACHC accreditation.
IHS depth: IHS has ACHC consulting experience and can support organizations evaluating ACHC as an alternative or complement to URAC. Contact us to discuss your payer mix and existing accreditation portfolio.
The Joint Commission
The Joint Commission (TJC)
CMS approval: Ongoing (deemed status holder)
Program name: Home Care Accreditation (includes home infusion therapy)
Background: The Joint Commission is the largest healthcare accrediting body in the United States, with accreditation programs spanning hospitals, ambulatory care, home care, and laboratory services. Its home care program includes home infusion therapy as a service category.
Standards orientation: TJC standards are highly structured around the National Patient Safety Goals framework, continuous survey readiness, and tracer methodology. The approach is comprehensive and the standards are applied across a wide range of home care service types.
Best fit for: Hospital-affiliated home infusion programs, integrated delivery networks that already hold Joint Commission hospital accreditation, and organizations whose referral relationships are concentrated with Joint Commission-accredited health systems that prefer or require TJC accreditation for network partners.
CHAP
Community Health Accreditation Partner
CMS approval: Ongoing (deemed status holder)
Program name: Home Infusion Therapy Accreditation
Background: CHAP has historically focused on home health, hospice, and community-based health services. Its HIT program extends that community-centered care philosophy into infusion therapy services delivered in the home.
Standards orientation: CHAP emphasizes patient and family-centered care, community integration, and the home as the care environment. Standards reflect a care coordination model built around the patient's living context rather than a pharmacy or clinical operations framework.
Best fit for: Community-based home health agencies expanding into infusion therapy, organizations with an existing CHAP home health accreditation, and rural or underserved-market providers where CHAP's community care philosophy aligns with the organization's mission.
NABP
National Association of Boards of Pharmacy
CMS approval: Ongoing (deemed status holder)
Program name: NABP Home Infusion Therapy Accreditation
Background: NABP is the national organization for state boards of pharmacy. Its accreditation programs (formerly including VIPPS for mail-order pharmacy) are pharmacy-centric by design and governance.
Standards orientation: NABP standards reflect a pharmacy operations and regulatory compliance framework. The HIT program approaches infusion therapy through the lens of pharmacy practice standards, drug safety, and state board compliance.
Best fit for: Pharmacies with deep NABP relationships, organizations subject to state board requirements that align with NABP standards, and infusion pharmacies that view the benefit primarily through a pharmaceutical care lens.
The Compliance Team
The Compliance Team (TCT)
CMS approval: Ongoing (deemed status holder)
Program name: Exemplary Provider Accreditation — Home Infusion Therapy
Background: The Compliance Team is a smaller accrediting organization that has historically focused on DMEPOS and pharmacy providers. Its Exemplary Provider program is designed to be accessible to smaller organizations and independent providers.
Standards orientation: TCT standards are structured around compliance documentation and supplier eligibility requirements, with a practical, process-oriented approach. The program is often selected by smaller or independent pharmacies for whom the larger accrediting bodies' programs may present disproportionate administrative burden.
Best fit for: Small independent infusion pharmacies, DMEPOS suppliers adding infusion therapy services, and organizations for whom simplicity of process is a primary selection criterion.
Side-by-Side Comparison: Key Factors
| Factor | URAC | ACHC | Joint Commission | CHAP | NABP | TCT |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| CMS deemed status | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Current CMS approval | Through 2030 | Active | Active | Active | Active | Active |
| Standards orientation | Pharmacy / managed care / org governance | Pharmacy / clinical care delivery | Hospital / patient safety goals | Community / home-centered care | Pharmacy / regulatory compliance | Compliance documentation / supplier eligibility |
| Primary market | Specialty and infusion pharmacies, managed care | Community and specialty pharmacies, DMEPOS | Hospital-affiliated programs, IDNs | Community home health agencies | Pharmacies with state board relationships | Small independent pharmacies, DMEPOS |
| Synergy with other accreditations | Strong — with URAC Specialty Pharmacy, Drug Therapy Mgmt, PBM | Strong — with ACHC Pharmacy, DMEPOS | Strong — with TJC Hospital, Ambulatory | Strong — with CHAP Home Health, Hospice | Moderate — with NABP VIPPS, pharmacy programs | Moderate — with TCT DMEPOS |
| Accreditation term | Contact URAC | Contact ACHC | Contact TJC | Contact CHAP | Contact NABP | Contact TCT |
| Fees | Not publicly disclosed — contact businessdevelopment@urac.org | Not publicly disclosed — contact ACHC | Not publicly disclosed — contact TJC | Not publicly disclosed — contact CHAP | Not publicly disclosed — contact NABP | Not publicly disclosed — contact TCT |
| IHS consulting depth | Deep — led by former URAC COO & General Counsel | Experienced | Experienced | Available | Available | Available |
How to Choose the Right Accrediting Body
Selecting an accrediting body is not purely a standards comparison exercise. The right choice depends on several organizational factors:
Existing Accreditation Portfolio
If your organization already holds URAC Specialty Pharmacy or Drug Therapy Management accreditation, URAC MHITS is the lowest-friction path — your staff already understands URAC's standards structure, survey methodology, and quality management expectations. Similarly, ACHC pharmacy-accredited organizations have an advantage in ACHC's HIT program.
Payer Contract Requirements
Some commercial payers specify which accrediting body they recognize for home infusion therapy credentialing. Before selecting a body based on the Medicare requirement alone, audit your commercial payer contracts and network agreements to identify any body-specific requirements. A mismatch between your Medicare accrediting body and your commercial payer requirements may require dual accreditation.
Referral Source Relationships
Hospital-affiliated referral sources may have preferences — or informal expectations — about which accrediting body their preferred suppliers use. If your referral pipeline is concentrated with Joint Commission-accredited health systems, TJC accreditation may carry relationship value beyond the Medicare requirement.
Organizational Size and Capacity
Larger accrediting bodies with highly developed standards (URAC, TJC) often produce more rigorous operational infrastructure as a byproduct of the accreditation process. Smaller organizations with limited administrative bandwidth may find that programs structured for their scale — like TCT's Exemplary Provider program — impose a more proportionate compliance burden.
Clinical Service Model
URAC's MHITS standards approach infusion therapy from a comprehensive clinical and organizational governance framework. ACHC's standards are strong on pharmacy operations and nursing services. TJC's standards are grounded in hospital-developed patient safety frameworks. The body whose standards most closely reflect your actual service model is typically the easiest to demonstrate compliance with.
URAC MHITS and the Specialty Pharmacy Relationship
One strategic advantage of URAC's MHITS program is its alignment with URAC's Specialty Pharmacy accreditation. Many specialty pharmacies that dispense high-cost infusion drugs are simultaneously pursuing or maintaining URAC Specialty Pharmacy accreditation. The organizational infrastructure required by URAC's specialty pharmacy standards — quality management, consumer protection, care coordination, clinical protocols — substantially overlaps with the MHITS requirements. For specialty pharmacies, URAC MHITS often represents the most efficient path to Medicare billing eligibility because much of the compliance infrastructure is already in place.
Not Sure Which Accrediting Body Is Right for Your Organization?
IHS helps organizations evaluate their accreditation options based on their specific payer mix, existing accreditation portfolio, clinical service model, and organizational capacity. Schedule a free discovery session to work through the decision with a team that understands URAC from the inside — and knows how each body's standards compare in practice.
Schedule a Free Discovery SessionConsulting fees are scoped per engagement — contact for proposal. None of the accrediting bodies listed publicly disclose their fee schedules. Contact each body directly for current fee information.