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Groups of hospitals, doctors and other health providers that agree to coordinate patient care as part of an Obamacare program generated $466 million in savings to the federal Medicare program in 2015, officials said Thursday. The groups, known as accountable care organizations, provide care for a total of about 7.7 million beneficiaries of Medicare, the program that covers primarily senior citizens. (Mangan, 8/25)

The mixed results for Medicare accountable care organizations continued last year with fewer than one-third of them qualifying for bonus payments, the CMS said Thursday. The news comes as the administration is preparing providers for the new Medicare reimbursement program known as MACRA, which is set to begin collecting data in January. It shifts away from fee-for-service payments and toward value-based payments, thus promoting the use of programs like ACOs. (Muchmore, 8/25)

Medicare accountable care organizations have saved more than $1.29 billion since 2012, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services announced Thursday. All Medicare ACOs, which number more than 400 including both shared savings program participants and pioneer ACOs, saved a total of $466 million in 2015, the agency said. The administration has sought to enroll more providers in ACOs as part of its goal to tie more medical reimbursements to quality, rather than quantity. (McIntire, 8/25)