Association Between Specialist Office Visits and Health Expenditures in Accountable Care Organizations

Key Points Question What is the association between office visits conducted by specialists and health care spending in an accountable care organization? Findings In this cross-sectional study of 620 distinct accountable care organizations, organizations in which 40% to 45% of patient visits were provided by specialists had statistically significantly lower per-beneficiary person-year spending compared with those in which less than 35% or at least 60% of the visits were conducted by specialists. Meaning Some specialist involvement in care processes for patients appears to be necessary for accountable care organizations to lower their costs.