Are ACOs Successful in Integrating Social Services with Medical Care?

Despite interest in addressing social determinants of health (SDOH) to improve patient outcomes, little progress has been made in integrating social services with medical care. Even for accountable care organizations (ACOs) that have been early adopters in addressing social needs, significant difficulties have been experienced in this area.

These findings were detailed in the February issue of Health Affairs, as researchers aimed to understand how healthcare providers with strong motivation (for example, operating under new payment models) and commitment (for example, early adopters) fared at addressing patients’ social needs.

For the study, the research team collected qualitative data from 22 ACOs that were early adopters and were working on initiatives to address social needs…

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