Like a fine wine, accountable care organizations get better with age.
That’s according to a new analysis of ACOs participating in the Medicare Shared Savings Program, released last week. Nursing homes and hospitals taking part in the program for four or more years were responsible for almost all of the $314 million in savings generated in 2017, consulting firm Avalere notes.
Those taking part in MSSP — Medicare’s largest alternative payment model — for three or more years typically performed better than brand new ACOs. In fact, new participants in the first two years increased Medicare spending.
“These results reinforce what we have heard from accountable care organizations — that they need time to realize the fruits of their investments,” Gabriel Sullivan, a manager at Avalere and author of the analysis, said in a statement. “Experience matters in driving positive financial performance among accountable care organizations.”
Interest in the care coordination has ballooned in recent years. In 2012, Medicare Shared Savings started off with 27 ACOs but has swelled to 561 this year. About 10.5 million Medicare beneficiaries receive care from nursing homes and other providers participating in ACOs.
Avalere came to its conclusions by analyzing data from the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services’ 2017 Shared Savings Program Accountable Care Organization Public Use Files.
