An ACO, Accountable Care Organization, is a provider-based organization that takes responsibility for meeting the healthcare needs of a defined population with the goal of simultaneously improving health, improving patient experiences, and reducing per capita costs. An ACO must have a strong primary care foundation, and also may integrate other specialists, hospitals, nursing homes, etc. to promote a high degree of care coordination. While medical homes promote better care coordination by primary care providers, it is believed that the establishment of a robust medical neighborhood, which includes specialists and other providers, is able to better ensure effective care coordination. It takes the involvement of specialists to ensure that more specific and appropriate care is provided to patients. Through the ACO model, specialists work with primary care clinicians on diagnosis and treatment, patient management, transition from one clinician to another, and reduction of hospitalization. By working together, primary care and specialty clinicians will be able to improve the quality of care offered to patients and reduce healthcare costs. I feel over the course of 5 to 10 years we will see it start out as primary care providers leading with Specialist to be secondary care providers, but I then I feel it will then transcend into more of the specialist being the primary care provider with then the original primary care to then handle follow-up.

By CPA Guru 4 years ago . Marked as helpful (264). Marked as unhelpful (261)