Cigna ACO pilots are improving quality, cutting costs

Cigna's ACO pilots are doing so well at improving quality and lowering costs that the healthcare payer plans to more than double its pilot programs later this year.

Cigna (NYSE: CI)  has seen positive results since 2007 at its own Cigna Medical Group of Arizona and since 2008 at Dartmouth-Hitchcock Medical Center. In Arizona, the ACO program resulted in annual savings of $336 per patient and the cost of ambulatory surgery is down 11 percent. The number of preventive care visits rose by 3 percent overall, including an increase of 12 percent for adults, reports the Hartford Courant. Additionally, there was a 10 percent improvement in closing gaps in care because a care coordinator made sure patients followed through on appointments and medical tests. – Read the full article in FierceHealthPayer