Introduced in March 2011 by the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), accountable care organizations (ACOs) are groups of doctors, hospitals, and other healthcare providers who voluntarily come together to provide high quality, coordinated care to patients . Federally-backed ACOs under the Medicare Shared Savings Program give incentives for providers to work collaboratively across health care settings to treat Medicare patients and must serve a minimum of 5,000 patients. There are also private ACOs facilitated by either providers (most often hospitals or physician groups) or insurance companies. The goal of all ACOs is to slow the growth in health care costs while still meeting high standards of care. Savings are accomplished by providers working together to give patients the right care at the right time in order to prevent the unnecessary duplication of services as well as medical errors. Approved Medicare Shared Savings Program ACOs serving patients in Indiana and/or Kentucky include: Deaconess Care Integration, LLC (southern IN and western KY); Franciscan American Health Network ACO, LLC (IN); Indiana University Health ACO, Inc. (central IN); Jackson Purchase Medical Associates, PSC (KY); Owensboro ACO (KY); Quality Independent Physicians (southern IN, along with metro Louisville and Lexington, KY); and Southern Kentucky Health Care Alliance (south central and northern KY). For information on how the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services Innovation Center is encouraging ACOs, click here. General information on ACOs can also be found on cms.gov, healthcare.gov and in this June 2012 article, “Growth and Dispersion of Accountable Care Organizations: June 2012 Update.”