URAC seeks comments on its ACO accreditation

Accreditation firm URAC is seeking public comment on standards and measures for its new accreditation program being developed for accountable care organizations (ACOs).

URAC’s new program is a roadmap for health providers to achieve clinical integration and accountable care, according to information on its website. By earning URAC accreditation, providers demonstrate they are delivering improved patient care and reducing costs.

The accreditation program will include standards for basic organizational and operational components of a clinically integrated network, as well as standards to reflect a certain level of capability in risk contracting, consumer centeredness and quality management, according to URAC.

An advisory committee of industry experts designed the Accountable Care Accreditation for organizations prepared to assume greater risk and manage their patient populations, which requires a more technologically and programmatically robust organization. In addition to the standards, URAC is proposing to include measures with the Accountable Care Accreditation.

URAC’s roadmap includes two major components:

• Building a clinically integrated network--covered by URAC’s Clinical Integration Accreditation, providing standards for the basic organizational and operational components of a clinically integrated network (this program is expected to be released later this year); and
• Accountable Care Accreditation--builds on URAC’s Clinical Integration Accreditation program, adding standards reflecting advanced organizational and operational capabilities in the areas of risk contracting, consumer centeredness and quality management.

More information is available here. Comments are due on May 17.