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Long-term care providers have always played a crucial role in ensuring the health and well-being of the frail and elderly. As practitioners continue grappling with the demands of patient care and running their businesses, Accountable Care Organizations (ACOs) focused on residents of long-term care facilities offer a promising solution to enhance the quality of healthcare services offered to residents in their care while also helping to reduce costs.
Most ACOs participate in the Medicare Shared Savings Program (MSSP), which incentivizes healthcare providers to collaborate in enhancing patient outcomes and quality and decreasing healthcare expenses. ACOs were permanently authorized in 2010 by the Affordable Care Act to achieve these goals.
The MSSP aims to enhance beneficiary outcomes and increase the value of care by providing better care for individuals, promoting better health for populations and lowering growth in healthcare expenditures. The program plays a critical role in transitioning the health system toward increased quality and reduced costs, aligning with CMS’s goal of having 100% of Medicare beneficiaries in a value-based payment arrangement. To achieve these goals, there needs to be a deeper focus on driving program participation among providers serving populations that are disproportionately higher in cost. This includes long-term care residents, who often have complex medical needs and require a high level of care.