The option of capitated payments for accountable care organizations makes it possible for ACOs to lose money if they fail to reduce the cost of care, according to a report by the Wall Street Journal Health Blog.
Integration & Physician Issues
Health insurance representatives meeting in their trade group, America's Health Insurance Plans, worried that accountable care organizations would have too much negotiating clout, according to a report by the American Medical News.
It is still unclear whether accountable care organizations can truly save money or if they will drive costs higher, according to a report by the Wall Street Journal.
Hospitals in smaller communities and rural settings often have a difficult time attracting spine surgeons. However, once a community has established the need for a spine surgeon, there are a few things hospitals can do to attract good surgeons. Here…
A recent falling-out between Samaritan Medical Center in Watertown, N.Y., and North Country Orthopaedic Group, also in Watertown, was caused in part by the hospital's decision to spend $500,000 a year to pay on-call surgeons after investing the money for…
Advertisement
Draft criteria for accountable care organizations from the National Committee for Quality Assurance are "burdensome and overly prescriptive," according to a letter to CMS from the Federation of American Hospitals.
The American Medical Group Association has released comments on the National Committee for Quality Assurance’s 2011 draft of accountable care organization criteria, saying a multi-tiered structure may dilute ACO efforts and limit their success, according to an AMGA news release.
St. Paul (Minn.) Heart Clinic will dissolve on Jan. 1, and its 31 physicians will join either Minneapolis-based Allina Hospitals & Clinics or St. Paul-based HealthEast Care System, according to a Star Tribune report.
Here are eight hospitals, health systems and insurers that have recently formed ACOs.
Louisville, Ky.-based Norton Healthcare and insurer Humana have joined forces to create the first accountable care organization in the Louisville area, according to a Courier-Journal report.