Accountable care organizations reduce spending without compromising care

Evaluations of three accountable care organization payment models, including the Medicare Shared Savings Program, Colorado’s Accountable Care Collaborative and Oregon’s Coordinated Care Organizations, revealed successes in overall performance and spending, but further assessment is required to address their effect on patients’ health and quality of life, according to two studies and an editorial published in JAMA Internal Medicine.“Medicaid, the federal-state health insurance program for low-income individuals, has grown to cover more than 20% of the population nationally and accounts for a significant and growing portion of state budgets,” K. John McConnell, PhD, of the Center for Health Systems Effectiveness at Oregon Health and Science University, and colleagues wrote. “This growth poses a significant budgetary challenge, even among states choosing not to expand coverage through the Affordable Care Act. States are experimenting with a wide range of policies designed to control spending, including payment reforms that mirror aspects of Accountable Care Organizations (ACOs) in the Medicare and commercial markets.”