There will be hardly anyone who disagrees with the notion that the Accountable Care Organization (ACO) concept is gaining strength. Broadly speaking, it is a group of healthcare providers who agree to take on a shared responsibility for the care of a select bunch of patients while ensuring quality and minimum possible cost of care.

The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) recently announced the 2014 class of 123 Medicare Shared Savings Program ACOs, which means the total number of ACOs to date have now crossed 500, with many private ACOs also joining the trend. Many physician groups have overtaken large hospital systems and are now the largest supporter of ACOs.

Amidst all this discussion of payment reforms, the idea behind shifting from fee-for-service to pay-for-performance and how can ACOs help physicians reduce costs and improve outcomes, small practice providers and independent physicians must wonder where they fit. Let’s discuss in detail.

ACOs work as a team

In an ACO, multiple providers are working as one team. They are expected to work closely with others in their model to deliver a more coordinated care. Small providers may have to adjust their workflows a bit to match those required in an ACO, but it will also mean that they are able to serve the community better.

Use PCMH principles

Many provider organizations believe that the Patient-Centered Medical Home (PCMH) concept should act as the base of an ACO. The features of a successful PCMH are the same that can make your practice attractive for an ACO. These include using Electronic Health Record software, adopting team-based care, employing population-based management of chronic illness, and focusing on delivering evidence-based medicine. Implementation of health IT solutions such as EHR, PHR and quality measurement tools make it more affordable for small practices to adopt PCMH principles.

Common element for ACOs: Physicians

The common element for all ACOs is physicians. A physician group that is unaffiliated with a hospital can become an ACO but a hospital without affiliated physicians cannot. If you want to participate in an ACO but don’t want to sell your business, you may consider starting an independent practice association (IPA) which is affiliated with a local ACO program.

Being accountable is important

Even if the current trend of ACOs passes, it is important to control healthcare costs and improve overall efficiency and quality of our healthcare system. These may be only early days in the PCMH and ACO models, but as time passes, we all will know what works and what is sustainable.

Independent physicians and small group practices that participate in clinical performance measurement and work towards a more patient-centric approach will be in a position to move forward with the industry while providing better quality and more coordinated care to their patients.

In case you are willing to learn more about ACOs, CureMD has started an initiative called CureMD Integrated Community Exchange (ICE) which aims to provide individual patients quality care through community exchange programs.

Additionally, we are holding a webinar on Patient-Centered Medical Home next month in April. Be sure to attend it as we tell you how can you secure PCMH incentives and make informed decisions.