The number of accountable care organizations participating in the Medicare Shared Savings Program dropped from 517 at the beginning of 2020 to 477 at the beginning of 2021, marking a new low, according to January data released by CMS.
ACOs care for 10.7 million beneficiaries, making it Medicare's largest alternative payment model, according to the National Association of ACOs. Possible reasons ACO participation is waning could stem from CMS policy changes, such as the agency's 2018 move to reduce the share of savings most ACOs are eligible to retain and its 2020 decision to prohibit new ACOs from joining the program in 2021.
"Health Secretary Nominee Xavier Becerra and the incoming Biden administration need to re-examine the balance of incentives and risk to ensure ACO growth and continued savings to Medicare, which ACOs have a history of producing," NAACOs President and CEO Clif Gaus, ScD, said in a news release.