Dive Brief:
- Ohio is implementing a public/private partnership aimed at cutting Medicaid and private insurance costs.
- The program, which includes Aetna, Anthem Blue Cross and Blue Shield, CareSource, Medical Mutual of Ohio and United Healthcare, is being paid for by a $3 million federal grant authorized by the Affordable Care Act.
- Under the program, primary care doctors will be paid bonuses for overseeing all of their patients' care, using EMRs for all patients, offering 24/7 access to their practice, adopting disease-management protocols and tracking hospitalized patients.
Dive Analysis:
This program seems to be doing a lot of smart things, especially given that the state of Ohio hopes to have 90 percent of its population covered by value-based insurance within five years. Getting PCPs to offer comprehensive services of the kind the program requires makes a lot of sense. Unfortunately, it's going to be really hard to get most other primary care docs to meet the program's list of required activities. After all, taking them all on will be costly, and who will pay these costs once the ACA-funded program expires? Unless someone finds a new funding source for PCPs, this effort could be a flash in the pan.