Characteristics of Rural Accountable Care Organizations (ACOs): A Survey of Medicare ACOs with Rural Presence.

摘要

Accountable Care Organizations (ACOs) are groups of health care providers, principally physicianss and hospitals, who develop a new entity that contracts to provide coordinated care to assigned patients with the goal of improving quality of care while controlling costs. Section 3022 of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act of 2010 created the Medicare Shared Savings Program (SSP). The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) implements this program and has approved SSP contracts in five cycles since 2011, including some that participated in a special demonstration project that provided advance payment (as a forgivable loan). A new ACO Investment Model (AIM) program starts in 2015 that provides initial investment capital and variable monthly payments to ACO participants in rural and underserved areas who may not have access to the capital needed for successful ACO formation and operation.