Under an ACO, when do participating providers receive a share of savings?

• A. If cost benchmarks are not exceeded, no savings are shared.
• B. If cost benchmarks are exceeded while achieving quality targets, a portion of savings is shared with participating providers.
• C. All savings go to the payer.
• D. Savings are distributed to patients.

Answer: (B)

Under an ACO, financial rewards come from lowering overall spending while keeping or improving the quality of care. When actual costs come in below the cost benchmark and the participating providers meet the agreed quality targets, a portion of the savings is shared with those providers. This creates an incentive to both cut waste and maintain high care standards. If costs don’t beat the benchmark or quality targets aren’t met, there’s no shared savings. Savings aren’t automatically kept by the payer or given to patients; they’re shared with the providers who helped achieve the efficiency and quality gains.