The UAB Health System and its partners have established an Accountable Care Organization that manages more than 16,000 covered lives.

The ACO members are UAB Hospital, the University of Alabama Health Services Foundation, Medical West Hospital, and two Federally Qualified Health Centers, Christ Health Center and Cahaba Health Center. The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services authorized the ACO to begin serving patients in the beginning of 2018.

"The goal of coordinated care is to ensure that patients, especially the chronically ill, get the right care while avoiding unnecessary duplication of services and preventing medical errors," said Will Ferniany, PhD, CEO of the UAB Health System. "When managed properly, an ACO can deliver quality care while spending health care dollars more efficiently."

The ACO participates in the CMS Medicare Shared Savings Program with cost savings shared between the partner organizations and Medicare.

The ACO is administered by the Alabama Physician Network, which was established by UAB to spearhead initiatives between UAB Medicine and community physicians as part of a clinically integrated network. The APN is managed by its own board of directors, led by physicians and professional health care administrators. The board is chaired by Tony Jones, MD, UAB's chief physician executive. 13 of its 17 members are physicians.