RUMORS OF ACO DEATH GREATLY EXAGGERATED (Orthopedics this Week)
Gregg Masters, MPH, director of HealthInnovation Media and reimbursement gadfly, recently wrote in his blog about the current status of Accountable Care Organizations (ACO).
In all the sturm-und-drang of Obamacare vs. Trumpcare, ACO are like the kids in the middle of divorcing parents. How are they doing?
Masters tackled that question with a really interesting chart. Here it is.
A Little ACO Background
He went on to say in his healthcare blog: “As of the end of the first quarter of 2017, our inventory included 923 active public and private ACOs across the United States, covering more than 32 million lives. The increase of 2.2 million covered lives in the past year means that more than 10 percent of the U.S. population is now covered by an accountable care contract.”
The Affordable Care Act (ACA aka Obamacare) was passed seven years ago (March of 2010). It set up ACOs. ACOs tie reimbursement to quality metrics and the cost of care. They are actually a lot like the old HMO model. ACOs can adopt alternative payment models. They’re accountable to patients and third-party payers for quality, cost and overall care.
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