Oregon Coordinated Care Organizations (CCOs)

Oregon implemented a statewide accountable care model in 2012 with the launch of CCOs. CCOs are partnerships of payers, providers, and community organizations that work at the community level to provide coordinated health care for children and adult Oregon Health Plan Enrollees. CCOs build on pre-existing initiatives in the state including the Patient-Centered Primary Care Home (PCPCH) Program created in 2009 to enhance primary care across the state by encouraging practices to adopt the medical home model. 

Fifteen CCOs operate across Oregon and each is provided with a fixed global budget from the state. This financing strategy gives CCOs the flexibility to create alternative payment methodologies for providers and to explore innovative strategies to support transformation based on the needs within their specific communities. 

Oregon’s local coordinated care organizations (CCOs) provide health care to more than 600,000 Medicaid patients are improving care in several key areas while holding down costs. The CCOs began serving Oregon Health Plan members in 2012, and include over 450 PCMH practices and clinics. The Oregon Health Authority’s November Health System Transformation Progress Report  also shows reductions in ED visits and hospitalizations, while primary care visits have increased 18 percent. The report also demonstrated increases in electronic health record adoption among measured providers, which doubled. In 2011, 28 percent of eligible providers had EHRs, and by June of 2013, 57 percent of them had adopted EHRs.