The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services announced Monday an additional 89 accountable care organizations taking part in Medicare shared savings initiatives, bringing the total number of ACOs in the program to 154.
The new ACOs range from Arizona Health Advantage Inc., a 73-physician network of doctors' offices in Arizona, to ProHealth Solutions LLC., a 697-doctor alliance of hospitals and ACO professionals in Wisconsin.
Under the Medicare Shared Savings Program and other ACO initiatives, all created by the now preserved Affordable Care Act, ACOs that reduce the growth in the cost of health care can share a cut of CMS' savings. ACOs also have to report 33 performance measures to ensure they're not skimping on care.
Backers of ACOs say they can better coordinate care while putting the brakes on rising health care costs. CMS predicts the plan could save the government $940 million over four years. As of this month, about 2.4 million Medicare fee-for-service beneficiaries receive care from providers participating in the voluntary program, CMS said.
Of the 89 new ACOs, which operate in 40 states and Washington, D.C., five have joined using a higher-risk model that lets them enjoy a bigger share of Medicare's savings but also makes them responsible for losses if costs of care should go up.
Providers that want to join the program in its next enrollment period, in January, have from Aug. 1 through Sept. 6 to apply, CMS said.
