CMS plans to ‘retire’ some ACOs

The CMS wants to eliminate zero and low-risk tracks for accountable care organizations to more quickly move them to downside risk.

The agency announced Thursday that it is planning to overhaul the Medicare Shared Savings Program by scrapping Track 1 and Track 2 and will launch a Basic track that provides a smaller window for an ACO to be upside before it must take on modest downside financial risk. The agency proposes keeping the Track 3 high-risk option but it would be renamed the Enhanced track.

Currently, 460 of the 561 ACOs in the Shared Savings Program this year are in Track 1. Another eight are in Track 2, 38 are in Track 3 and 55 are in Track...