ACOs in Pioneer Model, Shared Savings Program improve quality, generate savings: 10 things to know

Accountable care organizations participating in the Pioneer program and Medicare Shared Savings Program reduced Medicare spending by $817 million last year, according to CMS.

Here are 10 things to know about the performance results of ACOs participating in the Pioneer program and the MSSP.

Pioneer program

1. CMS named the original 32 Pioneer ACOs in December 2011, and upon the release of first year performance data in July 2013, nine Pioneers departed from the program. In August 2014, San Diego-based Sharp Healthcare left the Pioneer program, and in September, Flint, Mich.-based Genesys Physician Hospital Organization, Mishawaka, Ind.-based Franciscan Alliance, and Wayne, Pa.-based Renaissance Health Network also announced their departure, leaving only 19 of the original 32 ACOs in the program. 

2. For performance year two, Pioneer ACOs generated estimated total model savings of more than $96 million, and they saved the Medicare Trust Fund approximately $41 million in the second performance year.

3. Eleven of Pioneer ACOs earned shared savings totaling $68 million in performance year two.

4. The mean quality score among Pioneer ACOs increased by 19 percent during performance year two. The mean score was 85.2 in 2013, up from 71.8 percent in 2012.

5. The Pioneer ACOs showed improvement in 28 of the 33 quality measures — including screening for tobacco use and cessation, and controlling high blood pressure — with average improvements of 14.8 percent across all quality measures.

MSSP ACOs

1. The MSSP requires healthcare providers to make a three-year commitment to care for a group of at least 5,000 Medicare beneficiaries.

2.  The CMS release included performance year one results for MSSP ACOs with April 2012 and July 2012 start dates.

3. In performance year one, MSSP ACOs held spending to $652 million below their targets and earned more than $300 million as their share of program savings.

4. The MSSP ACOs saved the Medicare Trust Fund approximately $345 million in performance year one.

5. MSSP ACOS improved on 30 of 33 quality measures, including measures on screening for high blood pressure and clinicians' communication, in performance year one.

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