Northeast Ohio hospitals join national ACO collaborative

Cleveland-based University Hospitals and Akron-based Summa Health System are two of 20 health systems from across the country that have come together as part of a national accountable care organization collaborative program (Source: “University Hospitals, Summa among 20 health systems to join collaborative networks,” Crain’s Cleveland Business, May 21, 2010).

The 20 systems have formed two collaboratives that will work together to design ACOs that will promote better patient involvement and increased patient accountability for their own health care. The collaboratives are being organized by Premier, a performance improvement alliance of more than 2,300 U.S. hospitals and 67,000-plus other healthcare sites. The groups also will:

• Create medical homes for patients
• Explore new care delivery models for primary, speciality and hospital care
• Intergrate specialists, acinllary providers and hospitals
• Develop reimbursement models that emphasize value of care
• Create an HIT infrastructure that would allow medical personal to share patient information

The accountable care organizations developed by the 20 partner systems could be among the first to apply for new Medicare contracts in which providers would share Medicare cost savings. Those contracts will be available in 2012.