- Are MSSP ACOs hitting target savings? CMS says no, but a new report says yes. A new report from the National Association of ACOs (NAACOs) finds that accountable care organizations (ACOs) participating in the Medicare Shared Savings Program (MSSP) generated $1.84 billion in savings between 2013 and 2015—nearly twice as much as the $954 million CMS data show the ACOs saved.
- NAACOs voices support for Connected Care Pilot Program. NAACOs has expressed support for the Connected Care Pilot Program, which will use $100 million to boost telemedicine and digital health services for U.S. residents living in rural areas. In a letter to Federal Communications Commission (FCC) Chair Ajit Pai, NAACOs wrote, "Since ACOs achieve savings by eliminating ineffective services and promoting low-cost care, the Commission will find its goals of the Connected Care Pilot will almost certainly fit with ACOs' mission." However, the group also called for a "less prescriptive use of funds [to] allow ACOs to best fit the needs of their patients," and recommended that FCC measure the program's success by "leverag[ing] existing reporting requirements" for ACOs "before creating new measures and reporting burdens."
- Physician-led ACOs outperform hospital-led ACOs, study finds. Physician-led ACOs participating in MSSP saved about $256.4 million for Medicare in 2015, while participating hospital-led ACOs ended up costing the program money in the same time period, according to a study in the New England Journal of Medicine. For the study, researchers assessed Medicare claims between 2009 and 2015 to assess costs for patients in physician- or hospital-led ACOs before and after those ACOs joined MSSP. The researchers found that "[a]fter three years of the MSSP, participation in shared-savings contracts by physician groups was associated with savings for Medicare that grew over the study period, whereas hospital-integrated ACOs did not produce savings (on average) during the same period."
From Advisory Board:
- Understand the health insurance business. Join us for the next installment of our four-part 30-minute webconference series today, September 13, at 3:00 p.m. ET to get up to speed on commercial insurers, Medicaid, Medicare, and more.
- Learn what the midterm elections do (and don't) mean for health care. Join us on Thursday, September 27, at 1:00 p.m. ET to to get our take on how the elections will--and won't--impact the outlook for health policy in 2019 and beyond.
- What's new in chronic disease management? Join us on Thursday, September 27, at 3:00 p.m. ET to learn how provider organizations are scaling legacy approaches to chronic disease management for multi-morbid patients, while improving health outcomes and reducing utilization.