A New Study Finds That Accountable Aging Care Management Does Not Improve Outcomes For Older Adults

Posted by seoexpert131 on February 1st, 2023

An accountable aging care management (AAM) organization must carefully monitor and manage patients with chronic conditions, a study from New Jersey's Region IV Area Agency on Aging has found. The findings suggest that AAM organizations can better address the needs of those with complex needs but should not assume that their management and coordination efforts are associated with improved outcomes.

Study findings

A new study from the University of Michigan finds that accountable aging care management programs do not improve care outcomes for older adults. The findings suggest that the major effort to shift towards accountable care may not be having the desired effect.

ACOs are health systems that are responsible for assessing the quality of care for their patients and reducing costs. They must develop target outcomes and incentives to align with those goals.

ACOs focus on patient-centered care and use algorithms to assess utilization. They invest in care coordination and develop new roles across care settings. Some ACOs even conduct home visits as part of a structured care management program. エイジングケア 50代

Accountable aging care management is a strategy to help providers achieve improved quality and reduced costs of care for traditional Medicare patients. In addition to assessing spending and quality, ACOs may encourage providers to provide more care for patients with chronic conditions. For example, they can help consumers understand the symptoms of their conditions and how to manage them.

ACOs participate in the Medicare Shared Savings Program (MSSP). This program helps ACOs earn additional Medicare dollars by managing the care of traditional Medicare patients. There are many questions about the effectiveness of this approach. Among them is whether it can improve the care of the growing number of Baby Boomers.

Older adults are a major component of the Medicare population. Many are among the nation's most vulnerable groups of people to chronic disease. Their needs are largely unaddressed by episode-based reforms. Several states are required to screen for social needs in Medicaid managed care plans. These programs are intended to address social needs but may not be sufficient.
ACOs must carefully manage patients with chronic conditions

Accountable Care Organizations (ACOs) are organizations that coordinate care to improve the quality of medical care while controlling health care costs. ACOs are created as a part of the Affordable Care Act, and are a key element of Medicare's Shared Savings Program. In exchange for sharing in savings, providers are incentivized to provide better quality care.

These organizations must have three basic needs in order to succeed: a data-driven, cost-efficient system of care, an incentive to encourage patients to be proactive with their health, and the ability to share that information. Successful ACOs have these three things in place.

The most important component of a successful ACO is flexibility. The team must be able to adapt to changing conditions. Also, it's essential that communication and collaboration is constant. It's not uncommon for an ACO to be composed of a large number of small practices.

Most ACOs report that they have comprehensive care management programs. However, only one in five of these programs is designed to encourage patient engagement. Moreover, only 38 percent of these programs provide advanced programs to help patients become more active in their care.

ACOs also focus on reducing unnecessary tests and procedures. They are financially incentivized to avoid these procedures, as well as to preventively manage chronic disease.

ACOs have to pay back CMS if they overspend. They may need to change the way they reimburse providers. They can also receive bonus payments for effectively delivering clinical care. This can help shift the balance of their financial arrangement.

There are a variety of ways to measure the quality of an ACO. ACOs report on 33 quality measures, including patient safety, care coordination, and preventative health. Additionally, they report on more than a dozen metrics related to at-risk populations.
ACO-reported care management and coordination activities were not associated with improved outcomes among patients with complex needs

The impact of care management and coordination on outcomes has not been well studied, and few studies have looked at the association between complex care management programs and outcomes. This study addresses this important research gap. To do this, researchers conducted a survey of ACOs in the United States. They also analyzed performance measures and expenditures for patients with multiple chronic conditions.

Participants in the survey were grouped into tertiles based on their reported level of care management and coordination activity. ACOs in the top tertile were highly involved in care coordination and coordinated care processes, while those in the bottom tertile were comparatively less engaged. However, these tertiles were not statistically different when comparing outcomes among patients with complex needs. Likewise, utilization and spending data for these populations were not significantly different between tertiles.

One of the most common areas of care management and coordination was patient navigation. Many ACOs employed a patient navigator for all patients. These navigators were largely used to connect patients to social services and resources. Other common care management and coordination activities included routines, such as self-management classes and protocols for appropriate use of the emergency department.

Another area of focus was improving care transitions. ACOs often utilized standardized protocols for the transition from hospital to home, with follow-up by telephone within 72 hours of discharge. Some ACOs also hired post-discharge care managers.

One of the more unique strategies implemented by ACOs was the use of technology. Using electronic health records, providers identified patients with complex needs. Typically, these patients are frail older adults, whose diagnoses are heterogeneous, requiring coordination across numerous health care providers. Moreover, they have a multitude of functional limitations, nonmedical needs, and are often referred to as the "frail" or "noncompliant" population. Identifying these patients allows providers to address these needs before they become complex.
New Jersey's Region IV Area Agency on Aging

The South WIOA Region, also known as the South Jersey Workforce Collaborative, is no exception. Aside from its burgeoning workforce, the region is home to many of New Jersey's biggest institutions of higher learning and research and development. As such, the region has the distinction of being the state's hub of innovation.

The region also has the distinction of being the most active in the realm of talent development. In addition to implementing and enhancing programs and services, the region also plays a role in identifying and addressing workforce development needs on a county-by-county basis. This enables the region to serve as a one-stop shop for employment related needs. Its most notable accomplishment is the NJ Caregiver Relief Program, which is a well-designed program to reduce stress for older workers and their families.

The state of New Jersey has a long history of providing a wide array of resources to help citizens and businesses navigate the myriad career options available to them. One such service is the Office of Workforce Research and Analytics, which provides data and information to help employers and workers navigate the workforce and education landscape. Another is the Older Americans Act, which funds programs to help older adults maintain independence at home and in the community.

Among other initiatives, the state has partnered with American Job Centers to help job seekers find employment in the tumultuous labor market. At the same time, the state is putting more money into its vocational training fund, which pays tuition to qualified candidates.

The state has also been a leader in the field of professional development, which includes programs to educate workforce development practitioners.
Montefiore Accountable Care Organization

Montefiore Accountable Care Organization (ACO) provides care coordination to Medicare and Medicaid beneficiaries in the Bronx. The ACO is led by a consortium of Bronx health care organizations that participate in New York State's Health Home care coordination program for Medicaid beneficiaries.

This program has provided care to more than 200,000 Bronx residents. Its success in managing care for chronic illnesses such as diabetes, asthma and congestive heart failure has helped lower medical costs. In addition, the organization has been recognized by the federal Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Innovation.

Montefiore's ACO also operates an advanced model of care coordination. Its software analyzes claims data and stratifies patients into three health risk categories. The software also allows the CMO to make standard protocol decisions for patients. The CMO provides a full range of services, including preventative care, wellness, and health education.

In addition, Montefiore's care management organization has years of experience in coordinating care across care settings. For instance, it manages a program called the House Calls Program. These programs provide primary care for homebound seniors.

The care coordination program also includes nurses and care managers who screen elderly adults for mental illness. This helps to connect them to mental health services.

The ACO is working to reduce costs, while maintaining high quality care. In the first year, the program helped Medicare save million. By the second performance year, the program had saved over million.

Montefiore's care management team has more than 200 specially-trained care managers. They are trained to help transition patients from one setting to another, as well as to assist with chronic and complex patients.

Montefiore has an integrated network of 21 community-based primary care centers. It also has an emergency room navigator, which can be a nurse, a social worker or a nurse practitioner.