Expanding value-based care models, including accountable care organizations, can help address the worsening primary care shortfall in the
With 50 million Americans lacking adequate access to primary care, it is vital more physicians begin navigating to that area of care. The report, "Advancing Primary Care Delivery: Practical, Proven and Scalable Approaches," shows expanding the implementation of innovative payment models such as ACOs could help draw more physicians to primary care.
Physicians that participate in ACOs are rewarded for their effectiveness and improving medical outcomes of their patients. The report emphasizes the role primary care physicians play in ACOs and encourages private health plans to continue partnering with physicians, hospitals and other providers to improve quality of care while reducing healthcare costs.
With 40 percent of payments to physicians and hospitals now designed to incentivize improving quality and reducing waste, it appears many health plans are transitioning to value-based care models. However, there is still more work to be done, as only 24 percent of payments to primary care physicians from insurers were value-oriented, according to the 2014 National Scorecard on Payment Reform from Catalysts for Payment Reform.