10 ACOs with the Highest Shared Savings Payments in 2020
Despite a pandemic, 2020 demonstrated the fortitude of accountable care organizations (ACOs), with these ten making the most of shared savings payments.
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By - The Medicare Shared Savings Program (MSSP) saved over $4 billion in 2020. Between the $1.9 billion in Medicare savings and $2.3 billion in accountable care organization (ACO) savings, this represents the program's best performance to date.
In 2019, ACOs showed large success in driving cost savings while improving care quality and the trend persists in 2020.
“Accountable Care Organizations are an Affordable Care Act success story,” said CMS Administrator Chiquita Brooks-LaSure in a recent press release. “The 2020 Shared Savings Program results continue to demonstrate the impact ACOs have in improving quality and lowering health care costs.”
ACOs managed to maintain savings in a year where healthcare systems were battling a pandemic.
“We have heard from ACOs that their work to coordinate care and improve quality enabled them to better respond to the COVID-19 pandemic,” said Meena Seshamani, MD, PhD, CMS Deputy Administrator and Director of the Center for Medicare. “They were able to work quickly to transition to telehealth and continue to provide needed access to care.”
READ MORE: Medicare ACO Savings Increased to $4.1B in 2020
In the following list, RevCycleIntelligence breaks down the individual ACOs that earned the most shared savings payments in 2020 based on performance data CMS recently released for participants Medicare Shared Savings Programs.
PALM BEACH ACCOUNTABLE CARE ORGANIZATION - $54.3 MILLION
Following an impressive year in 2019, the Palm Beach Accountable Care Organization (PBACO) again earned the greatest amount of shared savings among all ACOs. Between 2019 and 2020 PBACO increased its shared savings by nearly 11 percent. The organization comprises 275 primary care physicians and 175 specialists serving 79,000 Medicare members.
PBACO’s high savings rate is accompanied by a 100 quality score. This measure captures the patient and caregiver experience with the ACO in addition to care coordination and other preventive health measures. Sixty other ACOs also received this top mark.
STEWARD NATIONAL CARE NETWORK, INC. - $51.5 MILLION
Steward National Care Network has quickly become a successful member of the Medicare Shared Savings Program after switching from the Next Generation ACO model in 2019. Under the old model, the ACO had nearly $300,000 in shared savings. The new MSSP model has saved the organization $51 million.
The company is the third largest ACO by patient size, serving 1 million Medicare beneficiaries between its nine-state platform. To accommodate these members Steward employs 5,000 physicians in 36 hospitals.
BAYLOR SCOTT & WHITE QUALITY ALLIANCE - $47.1 MILLION
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Operating in Texas, the Baylor Scott and White Quality Alliance (BSWQA) leverages its large platform to improve healthcare access across the state. Its 750,000 members have access to a network of 6,000 physicians and 50 hospitals.
After joining the ACO program in 2015, BSWQA has become an exemplar for clinical integration. From 2019 to 2020, Baylor Scott increased its shared savings by $12.8 million while maintaining a 97.8 percent quality rating.
MASS GENERAL BRIGHAM ACO, LLC - $46.7 MILLION
As a newcomer to the Medicare Shared Savings Program, Mass General Brigham was able to accumulate $46.7 million in earned savings. “Our participation in Medicare risk models has been a central component of our expanded commitment to our value-based care strategy,” claimed Executive Vice President of Value Based Care, Gregg Meyer.
The choice to switch from the Next Generation ACO model to MSSP increased the ACOs patient base to 125,000 and allowed for 2,000 more providers to join its network.
PRIVIA QUALITY NETWORK, LLC - $42.2 MILLION
The Privia Quality Network, LLC maintained its high marks, generating $42.2 million dollars in savings. This ACO operates in Maryland, Virginia, and DC, and services 70,483 Medicare beneficiaries. Privia Health operates several ACOs throughout the country including locations in Texas and Georgia. All of Privia Health's ACOs generated cost savings in 2020, according to CMS MSSP data.
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Since 2019, the organization increased its quality rating from 92 percent to 96.8 percent while spending 25 percent less on inpatient care than the average ACO.
MILLENNIUM ACCOUNTABLE CARE ORGANIZATION, LLC - $40.6 MILLION
Exclusively working as an ACO in Southwest Florida, Millennium Accountable Care Organization (MACO) is a consistently high-performing organization. MACO’s pursuit of better data analytics and population health strategies earned it a 97.8 percent quality rating in 2020.
ADVOCATE PHYSICIAN PARTNERS ACCOUNTABLE CARE, INC. - $37.5 MILLION
Advocate Physician Partners, an affiliate of Aurora Health, saw earned savings increase by $15 million dollars between 2019 and 2020. The organization focuses heavily on transparency and population health measures that have lowered costs and improved care for the group’s 139,000 Medicare beneficiaries.
In a 2020 interview, Advocate Aurora Health’s chief medical officer Gary Stuck, DO, FAAFP, shared how the ACO has persistently saved Medicare money and earned shared savings. “We’ve had a great bit of investment in people and infrastructure,” he told RevCycleIntelligence. “But we think it's a great investment to provide our patients that coordination of care, which results in more affordable healthcare.”
SILVER STATE ACO LLC - $32.7 MILLION
Formed in 2013, Silver State ACO operates in Nevada as a partner of three other health systems. The ACO manages 49 medical practices and around 50,000 Medicare beneficiaries, with a focus in primary care.
Silver State has now earned shared savings for six consecutive years while maintaining a high-quality rating that stood at 98.75 percent in 2020.
MERCY HEALTH ACO, LLC - $29.6 MILLION
Spanning Missouri, Oklahoma, and Arkansas, Mercy Health ACO includes 4,000 integrated physicians, critical access hospitals, and rural health clinics.
Recently, Mercy partnered with Humana to increase access to virtual health services for its Medicare beneficiaries. “Mercy is committed to working with our communities to improve healthcare while also reducing the total cost of care,” said Shannon Sock, Mercy’s executive vice president, chief strategist, and CFO.
HEALTH CONNECT PARTNERS, LLC - $26.1 MILLION
Health Connect Partners is an ACO that operates within the Providence Health System of Washington, California, and Arkansas. In 2020, they generated $26.1 million in shared savings, a $12 million increase compared to 2019. Health Connect Partners also increased its quality rating from 95.13 to 96.87 during the same period.
Clarification 9/8/2021: This article has been updated to clarify Privia Health's ownership of multiple ACOs and the earned savings generated by its top-performing organization.
