CMS Announces 15 Advanced Payment Model ACOs
The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid (CMS) have announced 15 participants of the Advanced Payment Model ACO period, which began earlier this month. The same 15 had been announced for the the Medicare Shared Savings Program earlier this month. The Advanced Payment Model is designed for physician-based and rural providers who have come together voluntarily to give coordinated high quality care to the Medicare patients they serve.
The 15 ACOs are CoastalMedical, Inc. (Providence, R.I.), Cumberland Center for Healthcare Innovation, LLC (Nashville, Tenn.) Golden Life Healthcare LLC (Sacramento, Calif.), Harbor Medical Associates PC (South Weymouth, Mass.), Maryland Accountable Care Organization of Eastern Shore, LLC (National Harbor, Md.), Maryland Accountable Care Organization of Western Maryland (National Harbor, Md.) Medical Mall Services of Mississippi (Jackson, Miss.), MPS ACO Physicians, LLC (Middletown, Conn.) Physicians ACO, LLC (Houston, Texas), PriMed, LLC (Shelton, Conn.), Quality Independent Physicians, LLC (Louisville, Ky.), Reliance Healthcare Management Solutions (Tampa, Fla.), St. Thomas Medical Group, PLLC (Nashville, Tenn.), and Texoma ACO, LLC (Wichita Falls, Texas).
The selected organizations will receive an advance on the shared savings they are expected to earn. Participating ACOs will receive three types of payments: an upfront, fixed payment, an upfront, variable payment based on the number of its historically-assigned beneficiaries, and amonthly payment of varying amount depending on the size of the ACO.
Along with the five Advance Payment ACOs announced in April, today's announcement brings the total number of Advance Payment ACOs to 20.CMS says it will also be allowing organizations who are applying to participate in the Medicare Shared Savings Program beginning Jan. 1, 2012, to apply to participate in the Advance Payment ACO Model.