The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) announced 121 new participants in Medicare Accountable Care Organization (ACO) initiatives. With this announcement, ACOs now represent 49 states and the District of Columbia.
ACOs are groups of doctors and hospitals that join together to develop and execute a plan for a patient’s care and share information, putting the patient at the center of the health care delivery system. The ACOs are paid not based on how many tests or procedures are performed but by the success of the treatment administered.
With new participants in the Shared Savings Program (SSP), the Next Generation ACO Model, Pioneer ACO Model, and the Comprehensive ESRD Care Model, there will now be:
- Nearly 8.9 million beneficiaries served
- A total of 477 ACOs across SSP, Pioneer ACO Model, Next Generation ACO Model, and Comprehensive ESRD Care Model
- 64 ACOs are in a risk-bearing track including SSP, Pioneer ACO Model, Next Generation ACO Model , and Comprehensive ESRD Care Model
ACO participant breakdown:
- Next Generation ACO Model – 21 participating ACOs
- Medicare Shared Savings Program – 100 new ACOs and nearly 150 renewing ACOs (from January 1, 2016). 39 SSP ACOs will also participate in the ACO Investment Model (AIM). This model, which has a total of 41 participants, will provide pre-paid shared savings to encourage new ACOs to form in rural and underserved areas and to encourage current Shared Savings Program ACOs to transition to performance-based risk arrangement.
Read more: