Hartford health insurer Aetna said it has signed an accountable care agreement with St. Francis Hospital and Medical Center and its physicians’ network.
The agreement with St. Francis HealthCare Partners will cover approximately 18,000 Aetna customers, both self-insured and fully insured. SFHCP has 735 primary care physicians and specialists, as well as other providers.
Accountable care generally refers to payor-provider arrangements focused on improving health outcomes and reducing costs for a population of patients. The contracts often include financial incentives for providers to meet certain quality metrics.
St. Francis, which was certified in early 2013 by the federal government to provide ACO care for Medicare patients, announced an ACO-like arrangement in Aug. 2013 with Cigna.
Aetna recently announced that it would jointly develop accountable care products with Hartford Healthcare. The insurer has also inked ACO deals with various medical groups in the state.
