What is the significance of patient attribution in shared-savings models?

• A. It determines which patients' outcomes and costs affect a provider's performance and potential shared savings.
• B. It determines the hospital's supply costs.
• C. It determines the patient assignment to physicians.
• D. It determines reimbursement rates.

Answer: (A)

Attribution defines which patients' outcomes and costs count toward a provider's performance in a shared-savings program. By linking a defined patient population to a specific provider or care organization, attribution determines whose data—both health results and total spending—affects the calculation of performance rewards. This linkage drives whether a provider earns shared savings and how large that amount can be, because only the attributed patients’ outcomes and costs are evaluated in the performance measure. It doesn’t set hospital supply costs, it isn’t primarily about assigning patients to physicians (though it creates a link for measurement), and reimbursement rates are determined by contract terms and the overall performance calculation, not by attribution alone.