The Center for Health Care Strategies, Inc. has released a brief examining opportunities to establish effective accountable care organizations (ACOs) in Medicaid.  Outlined under the national health care reform law, the brief notes that ACOs can improve care coordination to reduce costs through combined medical, behavioral health, and social service offerings.

From the report:

Across the country, health purchasers are exploring the potential of accountable care organizations (ACO) to provide higher quality and more efficient care. Progress is being made for Medicare and commercial populations: the Brookings-Dartmouth ACO Pilot1 is developing commercial shared savings contracts with private payers; the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) released a proposed rule for a Medicare Shared Savings Program;2 and the Center for Medicare and Medicaid Innovation is supporting a Pioneer ACO Model for Medicare and multi-payer ACOs.  Yet, while much of the national ACO focus has been on Medicare and commercially insured populations, these new models also offer a critical opportunity to improve care and control costs for Medicaid programs. A community-focused, integrated model of care provides significant potential for improving care coordination and reallocating health care dollars more effectively for millions in the nation’s health care safety net. As Medicaid prepares to expand coverage to an additional 16 to 20 million Americans in 2014, the program must also rethink how it delivers primary and chronic care, particularly for its highest-need, highest-cost patients. Medicaid can use its tremendous purchasing power to drive delivery system redesign and payment reform through ACOs.

Full report: Accountable Care Organizations: Creating a Workable Approach for Medicaid (PDF | 62 KB)

Center for Health Care Strategies, Inc.  (2011).  Accountable care organizations: creating a workable approach for Medicaid.  Highsmith, N. and McGinnis, T.