Tim's WhatMatters Blog 

Another big integrated delivery system opts to pass on the Medicare ACO model.

The real test of ACO progress is the ability to use data in the care delivery and care management processes. Everything else is just talk.

If the Cleveland Clinic has this level of concern about the ACO regulations, how in the world will everyone else pull this off?

With most large organizations following similar strategies in response to healthcare reform, how will that produce the innovation we need to solve the problem?

The prosed ACO rules have a high level of HIT functionality in them. This will provide another boost to MU and a variety of other HIT initiatives.

With all of the momentum around ACOs, will things be different this time? The previous post explored the reasons why the ACO vision will come to fruitition this time. This post looks at some reasons to doubt the ACO model every becoming a reality.

With the increased focused on ACOs, provider organizations must come to grips with a key requirement if their ACOs are to be successful. This model requires taking financial risk and risk management requires information processing and management capabilities far greater than what we have today. This will become an IT arms race.