Mayo Clinic will not be participating in an accountable care organization (ACO), reports the Minneapolis Star Tribune. The renowned Rochester, Minn., clinic has rejected one of the key initiatives bought about by healthcare reform in favor of keeping its existing "efficient, patient-friendly program," said Douglas Wood, Mayo's chairman of health care policy and research, in the article.
The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid designed ACOs with the goals to cut healthcare costs and improve care. However, many of the leading health systems, like Cleveland Clinic, Geisinger Health System, and Intermountain Healthcare have blasted the ACO proposed rules for a number of reasons, including burdensome rules, shared savings, and Mayo's chief concerns that patients be included in oversight boards, as well as antitrust rules.
In addition, professional physician societies have also voiced their concerns against the ACO rules as written. Among them are the American College of Physicians, the American Academy of Family Physicians, the Medical Group Management Association, the American Medical Group Association, and the American Medical Association.
To learn more:
- read the Tribune article