Washington, D.C. (November 20, 2024) – Primary care centric ACOs provide better quality outcomes and generate more than twice the savings of their peers, according to a new report released by the Primary Care Collaborative (PCC).
Primary Care: The MVP of MSSP — written in partnership with the Robert Graham Center and Simple Healthcare — examined more than six years of data in the Medicare Shared Savings Program (MSSP).
“This report reinforces research demonstrating that access to primary care in total cost of care models curbs costs and boosts quality of care,” said PCC President and CEO Ann Greiner, one of the authors of the report. “If Congress is serious about improving Medicare, it’s critical they include strengthening primary care at the heart of those efforts.”
The analysis found that ACOs with more than 50 percent of physicians engaged in primary care consistently outperformed those with less than a majority of primary care physicians. Primary care centric ACOs were more likely to lower costs and earn back savings through MSSP, generating 2.4 times as many savings other ACOs over a six-year period
The MSSP was established by the Affordable Care Act in 2012. The program is a voluntary, value-based model in which ACOs receive a portion of the savings they generate, provided they reach cost and quality benchmarks The MSSP has generated savings for seven consecutive years, reaching $2.1 billion in 2023 — the largest in the program’s history.
“This research shows the central role that primary care has played in generating record savings in MSSP,” said Mark Del Monte, CEO and Executive Vice President of the American Academy of Pediatrics and Chair of PCC’s Board of Directors. “If policymakers want to continue building on the successes of the MSSP program, stronger investments in primary care through value-based models would be an important place to start.”
The report also lists 25 “Bright Spots” (high-performing MSSP ACOs) and provides further insight in three case studies — the Colorado-based Community Health Provider Alliance, the Louisiana-based MSSP Enhanced ACO and One Health Nebraska — and explored key learnings. Notably, these high-performing ACOs:
- Provide timely, actionable data to practices and community health centers (CHCs) to inform clinical decision-making
- Establish learning communities or labs to share best practices to increase alignment between practices and CHCs
- Empower practices and CHCs to work independently to achieve results that benefit ACO patients and members
- Focus on simple, proactive health care interventions and clearly define outcomes and financial goals
- Support practices and CHCs in developing creative, localized strategies to transform care
Read the full report here.