The delay in accountable care organization regulations has not stopped health systems in the state of Michigan from forming ACOs, according to a Crain’s Detroit Business report.
Some of the ACOs forming in Southeast Michigan may not survive as independent organizations once the regulations are released, according to the report. One area of concern is regulations limiting ACOs to one or two in a geographic area for each of the five Medicare pilot projects. Complicating the matter further is uncertainty over how many patients will e required to be covered in any one ACO.
Still, the delay in guidelines has not halted healthcare systems from developing their own ACO models and brands. The following ACO activity was mentioned in the report:
- St. Joseph Mercy Health System’s 2010 acquisition of IHA, a 150-physician organization in Ann Arbor, and plans to form an ACO.
- The four-hospital system Oakwood Healthcare’s creation of Oakwood ACO in 2010.
- Blue Cross Blue Shield of Michigan’s ACO, which is set to launch in 2014.
- Most recently, Dearborn, Mich.-based United Outstanding Physicians, a physician organization with more than 1,000 physicians, launched an ACO.
Read the Crain’s Detroit Business report on ACOs in Michigan.
Read more about ACOs:
– Steward Health CEO de la Torre Stresses Role of Community Hospitals in ACOs
– FTC, Justice Department Struggle to Compromise on Antitrust Guidance for ACOs
