business

Health system offers guaranteed savings as part of ACO

In a deal with employers and other customers, Milwaukee-based Aurora Health Care promises a slowdown in the growth of their customers’ health care costs.

By — Posted Aug. 15, 2012

Print  |   Email  |   Respond  |   Reprints  |   Like Facebook  |   Share Twitter  |   Tweet Linkedin

A Wisconsin health system has taken the unusual step of pledging savings for businesses that use its accountable care organization. Aurora Health Care, a 15-hospital system in eastern Wisconsin, announced in July that it will begin selling its accountable care plan in partnership with Hartford, Conn.-based Aetna.

Aurora said it will guarantee a slower growth rate in health care costs for its ACO customers compared with what employers have seen in previous years. In exchange, the businesses’ employees will get their care from the Aurora system.

“We believe this model sets a new standard for health care delivery and improved efficiencies,” Rick Klein, executive vice president of growth and marketing development at Aurora, said in a statement. “I wouldn’t be surprised if others emulate our model.”

The plans are meant for small and midsize businesses, which are less likely to be self-insured, and will take effect Jan. 1, 2013.

Smaller businesses that are “fully insured” pay a premium to Aetna or another health plan in exchange for Aetna managing benefits and carrying the risk for any expensive medical claims.

Aurora already works with large, self-insured employers, which do not pay premiums but pay bills directly and typically use a health plan only for administrative purposes.

Customers must submit three years of claims data so Aurora can estimate an expected savings, which could reach 10% annually, Klein said.

Part of the reason Aurora is confident it can deliver savings is its experience with its 48,000 employees. Aurora has seen a 6.2% annual increase in health care costs between 2001 and 2010, compared with a national average of 10.7%. Aurora’s health care costs rose just 1.2% between 2008 and 2010, while the national average was 9%.

Back to top


ADVERTISEMENT

ADVERTISE HERE


Featured
Read story

Confronting bias against obese patients

Medical educators are starting to raise awareness about how weight-related stigma can impair patient-physician communication and the treatment of obesity. Read story


Read story

Goodbye

American Medical News is ceasing publication after 55 years of serving physicians by keeping them informed of their rapidly changing profession. Read story


Read story

Policing medical practice employees after work

Doctors can try to regulate staff actions outside the office, but they must watch what they try to stamp out and how they do it. Read story


Read story

Diabetes prevention: Set on a course for lifestyle change

The YMCA's evidence-based program is helping prediabetic patients eat right, get active and lose weight. Read story


Read story

Medicaid's muddled preventive care picture

The health system reform law promises no-cost coverage of a lengthy list of screenings and other prevention services, but some beneficiaries still might miss out. Read story


Read story

How to get tax breaks for your medical practice

Federal, state and local governments offer doctors incentives because practices are recognized as economic engines. But physicians must know how and where to find them. Read story


Read story

Advance pay ACOs: A down payment on Medicare's future

Accountable care organizations that pay doctors up-front bring practice improvements, but it's unclear yet if program actuaries will see a return on investment. Read story


Read story

Physician liability: Your team, your legal risk

When health care team members drop the ball, it's often doctors who end up in court. How can physicians improve such care and avoid risks? Read story

  • Stay informed
  • Twitter
  • Facebook
  • RSS
  • LinkedIn