Wondering How ACOs Will Affect You and Your Practice? Ask Away

Let’s get right to the heart of the matter. Learning about ACOs isn’t how most of you want to spend your free time. And with all the complicated ACO-related information, statistics, and possible rules floating around out there, getting a clear grasp of how ACOs will affect you and your practice is nearly impossible. In a recent Health Affairs Blog, the author says that he has written about the provisions of the proposed ACO rule in “excruciating detail.” However, he says, he has “come to realize … that most health care practitioners and administrators are more interested in information that is far more basic: just what is “accountable care” and what capabilities are necessary?" At Physicians Practice, we’ve noticed a similar predicament. Though we’ve also written about ACOs in great detail, many physicians just don’t have the time to adequately research and understand them. Recently we asked our physician bloggers for their take on ACOs. Melissa Young gave us an impressively honest opinion - she didn’t have one. “Right now, unless I can find a way to learn about ACOs through osmosis while I sleep, you’re just going to have to wait for my opinion.” So, perhaps this will help. Physicians Practice is planning to conduct a question and answer podcast with an expert ACO consultant. Here are two ways you can take advantage of the podcast: 1. You can e-mail us your questions before the podcast, and a consultant may answer your questions directly. 2. Once we finish the podcast, you can download it and listen to it anywhere - on the way to work, while you’re eating lunch, or even … while you’re sleeping. I’m not a physician, so there’s no way I can formulate the questions impacting physicians better than you. But I can make sure your questions are answered. Any questions are fair game - from the very basic, to the more complicated, to specific questions regarding how your particular practice should prepare for ACOs. Share them with me at Aubrey.Westgate@ubm.com.