Accountable Communities (AC) are an important component of MaineCare's Value-Based Purchasing strategy, a multi-pronged initiative aimed at reducing costs while improving quality and outcomes for MaineCare members. Similar to Medicare's Accountable Care Organizations (ACOs), MaineCare's AC program contracts with groups of providers who volunteer to participate in the shared savings model.
If an AC succeeds in reducing costs while meeting quality benchmarks, the AC shares in the savings it achieves for the MaineCare program in the form of a shared savings payment, which is tied to the amount of the AC's savings and its quality performance.
The program does not dictate how these organizations provide care. Instead, the Department provides ACs with monthly and quarterly patient cost and quality data. The payment model creates incentives for ACs to make investments that improve cost and quality outcomes.
Accountable Community Partnerships
There are four ACs in the program:
- Community Care Partnership of Maine, LLC.
- Kennebec Regional Health Alliance
- MaineHealth Accountable Care Organization
- Beacon Health, LLC.
Program Growth & Success
The graphic below illustrates the increase in AC practice participation and attributed lives since the beginning of the program:
Program year dates, total savings, and shared savings payments can be found in the following table:
| Time Period | Total Savings to MaineCare | Total Shared Savings Payments* | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Year 1 - 8/1/14 - 7/31/15 | $5,414,028 | $961,455 | |
| Year 2 - 8/1/15 - 7/31/16 | $9,691,658 | $1,599,972 | |
| Year 3 - 8/1/16 - 7/31/17 | $8,959,599 | $1,521,273 | |
| Year 4 - 8/1/17 - 7/31/18 | $6,753,725 | $975,510 | |
| Year 5 - >8/1/18 - 7/31/19 | Final calculations will be completed in November 2020 | ||
| Year 6 - 8/1/19 - 7/31/20 | Final calculations will be completed in November 2021 | ||
| *include PY2 and PY3 quality audit adjustments | |||
Accountable Community Resources
- Example of an AC Member Letter (PDF)
- AC Primary Care Practices for PY7 (PDF)
- AC Quality Measures—Years 1-4 (PDF)
- AC Quality Measures—Year 5 (PDF)
Questions?
Email the VBP Unit for questions about the initiative, upcoming events, and meetings.