Growth of ACOs and Alternative Payment Models in 2017

Accountable care is an important mechanism used by public and private payers to align health care provider payments with efficient care for defined patient populations. As of the end of the first quarter of 2017, there were 923 active public and private ACOs across the U.S, covering more than 32 million lives. The increase of 2.2 million covered lives in the past year means that more than 10 percent of the U.S. population is now covered by an accountable care contract.

As the ACO model matures, there is now some turnover, with organizations joining and leaving the model. Since the first quarter of 2016, 138 new ACOs began operation, and 46 ACOs dropped their accountable care contracts, representing a net increase of 92 organizations becoming ACOs, or an 11 percent growth.

ACO News is a feature of the Medicaid Accountable Care Organization Resource Center, an online collection of tools designed to help Medicaid agencies develop and launch accountable care organizations.