The RUPRI Center's work assessing the development of ACOs in rural places including updating our data base showing the location of Medicare ACOs and using the data to create maps for each Census Region showing the counties in which Medicare ACOs have assigned beneficiaries.

Surveys will be used to collect data from providers (rural and urban) participating in ACOs that operate in rural areas, with questions about governance, distribution of shared savings, new protocols for patient engagement in care management, and use of clinical information to provide care across the continuum. Safety net providers in the service areas of ACOs but not participating in the ACOs will also be surveyed to learn of the impact of the ACO on their operations.

Publications

• Characteristics of Rural Accountable Care Organizations (ACOs) - A Survey of Medicare ACOs With Rural Presence
  Policy Brief
  RUPRI Center for Rural Health Policy Analysis
  Date: 05/2015
  In this policy brief, we present the findings of a survey of 27 rural accountable care organizations, focusing on characteristics important to their formation and operation.
• Developmental Strategies and Challenges for Rural Accountable Care Organizations
  Policy Brief
  RUPRI Center for Rural Health Policy Analysis
  Date: 02/2015
  This brief offers insights into the initial strategic decisions and challenges of four accountable care organizations (ACOs) with rural presences. These ACOs were formed as a step toward a value-driven rural delivery system. While several challenges need to be addressed, these insights can inform development of other rural ACOs.
• Facilitating the Formation of Accountable Care Organizations in Rural Areas
  Policy Brief
  RUPRI Center for Rural Health Policy Analysis
  Date: 07/2014
  This brief shows characteristics contributing to the formation of four accountable care organizations (ACOs) that serve rural Medicare beneficiaries, one each of the four census regions. The findings can help rural providers interested in forming/participating in an ACO assess the status and potential gaps of their core structures and capabilities.
• From Health Care Volume to Health Care Value - Success Strategies for Rural Health Care Providers
  Journal Article
  RUPRI Center for Rural Health Policy Analysis
  Date: 04/2014
  Examines strategies that rural healthcare providers can use to improve healthcare quality for patients.
• Medicare Accountable Care Organizations: Program Eligibility, Beneficiary Assignment, and Quality Measures
  Policy Brief
  RUPRI Center for Rural Health Policy Analysis
  Date: 04/2014
  This brief discusses Medicare Shared Savings Program eligibility, participation requirements, and quality measures relative to accountable care organization formation.
• Trends in Hospital Network Participation and System Affiliation, 2007-2012
  Policy Brief
  RUPRI Center for Rural Health Policy Analysis
  Date: 2014
  Network participation and system affiliation are two ways for hospitals to build and/or access necessary capacities to engage in the transformation to an integrated, patient-centered, pay-for-value care delivery model. This brief tracks trends in network participation and system affiliation among U.S. general community hospitals from 2007 to 2012.