Can accountable care organizations "disrupt" our fragmented child health system?

Abstract

An accountable care organization (ACO) is a hospital partnership with physicians (primary care and subspecialty/specialty care providers) that is accountable for both the cost and quality of providing care to a specified population. ACO agreements with a private health plan or public payer (Medicaid or Medicare) can be a full, partial, or no-risk arrangement with a negotiated allocation for any generated savings. ACOs should have a focus on a population, operate within an integrated system with shared physician and hospital control, and receive a capitated payment, all of which allow for a more innovative approach to providing care. Therefore, ACOs may be our best hope to “disrupt” the current fragmented pediatric health care system to achieve better child health as well as better care. “Disruptive” Internet and mobile innovations have revolutionized many areas of our lives, and similarly, ACOs should be considered another great example of a potentially beneficial “disruptive innovation.” ACOs will change our traditional ways of providing care, which are now based on individual face-to-face physician encounters. These innovations will alter the ways we monitor … Address correspondence to Stephen Berman, MD, FAAP, Children’s Hospital Colorado and University of Colorado School of Medicine, Department of Pediatrics, Mail Stop B032 13123 E. 16th Ave, E-mail: Stephen.Berman{at}childrenscolorado.org