Difference between revisions of "Accountable Care Organization"
(Created page with "An '''Affordable Care Organization''' (ACO) is An Accountable Care Organizations (ACO) is a network of physicians, hospitals, and other medical service providers, which contrac...") |
(better) |
||
| Line 1: | Line 1: | ||
| − | An '''Affordable Care Organization''' (ACO) is | + | An '''Affordable Care Organization''' (ACO) is an [[HMO]]-like model created by [[ObamaCare]], which encourages physicians, hospitals, and other medical service providers to form organizations to contract with third-party payors on a cost-savings basis. The financial incentive for ACOs is to keep patients out of hospitals, where medical care is more expensive. The ACO model emphasizes coordinated and preventive care in order to reduce health care expenses. The savings are to be divided between the ACO and the third-party payor. |
| − | + | Most ACOs do not include hospitals, but are focused on the use of primary care physicians and electronic medical records to manage patients. Many hospitals, although typically not the best ones, are also forming ACOs. | |
| − | About half of the | + | About half of the roughly 488 ACOs in existence in late 2013 are approved by and contracted with Medicare, while the other half are in contracts with insurance companies. |
== Medicare ACOs == | == Medicare ACOs == | ||
Revision as of 05:13, November 16, 2013
An Affordable Care Organization (ACO) is an HMO-like model created by ObamaCare, which encourages physicians, hospitals, and other medical service providers to form organizations to contract with third-party payors on a cost-savings basis. The financial incentive for ACOs is to keep patients out of hospitals, where medical care is more expensive. The ACO model emphasizes coordinated and preventive care in order to reduce health care expenses. The savings are to be divided between the ACO and the third-party payor.
Most ACOs do not include hospitals, but are focused on the use of primary care physicians and electronic medical records to manage patients. Many hospitals, although typically not the best ones, are also forming ACOs.
About half of the roughly 488 ACOs in existence in late 2013 are approved by and contracted with Medicare, while the other half are in contracts with insurance companies.
Medicare ACOs
There are two main types of Medicare ACOs:
- Medicare Shared Savings Program
- Advance Payment ACO Model, which contains additional financial incentives for selected ACOs from the basic Shared Savings program
There was also a Pioneer ACO Model, but that preliminary program is no longer open to applications.
Medicare patients are not obligated to see physicians or facilities that are in Medicare ACOs.