agilon health and Springfield Clinic Expand Partnership Through Senior Health Connect ACO
agilon health is expanding its relationship with Springfield Clinic in Illinois through a new arrangement that will bring the physician group into one of agilon’s Senior Health Connect Accountable Care Organizations (ACOs). The expansion builds on an existing partnership between the two organizations and extends their shared focus on value-based care, coordinated services and improved outcomes for Medicare beneficiaries.
Springfield Clinic is a community-based primary and specialty care organization with more than 650 physicians and advanced practitioners. Its healthcare professionals provide services across more than 80 specialties and serve patients throughout more than 20 counties.
The organization began its long-term partnership with agilon health in 2024 as it worked to transition toward a full-risk, value-based care model. That existing relationship currently supports approximately 18,000 senior Medicare Advantage patients.
The expansion into Senior Health Connect ACO is expected to extend the partnership to approximately 21,000 additional Traditional Medicare beneficiaries across the communities served by Springfield Clinic. Through participation in agilon’s ACO, which operates under the Medicare Shared Savings Program (MSSP), Springfield Clinic will receive additional infrastructure, technology, analytics and operational support designed to help physicians deliver coordinated and personalized care.
The organizations intend to use the ACO model to strengthen preventive care, encourage earlier intervention, improve chronic disease management and address healthcare needs before they result in avoidable complications.
Expanding Value-Based Care Across Illinois
The partnership represents an expansion of Springfield Clinic’s participation in value-based care beyond its existing Medicare Advantage population.Under the new arrangement, more Traditional Medicare beneficiaries are expected to have access to a care model focused on coordination and health outcomes rather than relying solely on traditional fee-for-service approaches.
Accountable Care Organizations are designed to encourage groups of healthcare professionals to work together to coordinate care for Medicare beneficiaries. Under the Medicare Shared Savings Program, participating organizations can receive shared savings when they meet applicable quality requirements and reduce healthcare spending relative to established benchmarks.
For physician organizations, ACO participation can create incentives to identify care gaps, improve preventive services and coordinate treatment across different healthcare settings.For patients, the model can support greater coordination between primary care providers, specialists and other members of the healthcare team.
Springfield Clinic’s participation in Senior Health Connect ACO will build upon the organization’s existing experience with accountable care. The clinic launched its own ACO in 2015 and has developed a physician-led foundation for value-based healthcare.The expanded relationship with agilon is intended to provide additional resources that can help Springfield Clinic scale those capabilities across a larger Medicare population.
Supporting Approximately 21,000 Traditional Medicare Beneficiaries
A key element of the expansion is the expected reach of approximately 21,000 additional Traditional Medicare beneficiaries.These patients are part of the communities where Springfield Clinic provides healthcare services. Through the ACO arrangement, physicians will have access to tools and support intended to help them better identify patient needs and coordinate services.
Traditional Medicare populations can include patients with multiple chronic conditions and complex healthcare needs. Effective coordination can be particularly important for older adults who may see several physicians, take multiple medications or require services across different care settings.The ACO model gives physicians a framework for monitoring these patients more proactively.
Preventive care is one important area of focus. By identifying patients who may be overdue for screenings, vaccinations or other recommended services, healthcare teams can work to close care gaps before they become more significant issues.Disease management is another area where coordinated care can have an important role.
Patients living with chronic conditions may require regular monitoring and support from multiple members of their healthcare team. Better coordination can help physicians identify changes in a patient’s condition earlier and determine when additional intervention may be appropriate.
Leveraging Technology and Data
agilon health provides technology and analytics capabilities designed to support physicians participating in value-based care arrangements.The company says its next-generation technology and AI-enabled platforms transform information from across the healthcare ecosystem into actionable insights for physicians.
These capabilities are intended to help care teams anticipate patient needs, identify opportunities for earlier intervention and close care gaps.Data can provide physicians with information that may not be immediately apparent during a routine clinical encounter. By analyzing relevant healthcare information, technology platforms can help identify patients who may require follow-up, preventive services or additional disease-management support.
For Springfield Clinic, the expanded partnership is expected to provide additional technology, analytics and operational resources that can complement the clinic’s existing clinical infrastructure.The objective is not to replace physician decision-making, but to provide clinicians with information and tools that can support their decisions.
Focus on Prevention and Earlier Intervention
Prevention is an important component of the expanded partnership.Value-based care models place greater emphasis on maintaining health, managing chronic diseases and preventing avoidable complications. This can require healthcare organizations to shift some resources toward proactive engagement rather than focusing primarily on treating problems after they become more serious.
For older adults, proactive care can include routine screenings, medication management, chronic disease monitoring and coordination between primary and specialty care.Earlier identification of health concerns can also provide physicians with opportunities to intervene before a condition becomes more difficult or costly to manage.
The ACO structure is intended to support these activities by giving physicians tools and incentives to monitor populations and coordinate services.
Specialized Support for Chronic Conditions
agilon has developed specialized clinical pathways addressing several chronic and complex conditions, including heart failure, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) and dementia.These pathways are designed to provide physicians with additional support for managing conditions that frequently require ongoing care and coordination.
Heart failure, for example, can require regular monitoring and coordination between primary care, cardiology and other healthcare services. COPD similarly requires long-term management, particularly for older adults who may experience changes in symptoms or functional status.Dementia can involve patients, family members, caregivers and multiple healthcare professionals, making coordination especially important.
By providing structured clinical pathways alongside technology and analytics, agilon aims to help physician groups deliver more proactive care to patients with complex needs.Springfield Clinic’s broad network of primary and specialty care providers provides an environment in which these coordinated approaches can be integrated across multiple areas of healthcare.
agilon’s Track Record in Accountable Care
agilon health has been supporting physician groups in value-based care since its founding in 2016.The company currently partners with more than 30 physician groups and health systems to help them participate in full-risk value-based care arrangements involving Medicare Advantage and fee-for-service innovation models.
According to agilon, its ACOs have generated more than $510 million in gross savings since 2021. The company also reports that these arrangements generated $125 million in savings for the Medicare Trust Fund.The company said its ACOs achieved an average quality score of 96% in 2024, the most recent year for which quality data was available in the announcement.
Four agilon ACOs achieved perfect quality scores, while five were recognized as high performers after achieving exceptional results across all quality measures.These figures form part of agilon’s stated track record as it expands its relationships with physician groups.The company is using that experience to support Springfield Clinic as the organization expands its participation in accountable care.
Physician-Led Care Remains Central
A central theme of the partnership is maintaining physician leadership while providing additional resources and infrastructure.Sunny Hampsey, senior vice president of Quality, Safety & Value-Based Care at Springfield Clinic, said the organization has developed a strong physician-led foundation for value-based care since launching its ACO in 2015.
According to Hampsey, joining Senior Health Connect ACO represents an evolution of that work and another stage in the partnership with agilon health.She highlighted agilon’s technology, analytics and operational support as resources that can help Springfield Clinic expand its existing capabilities.
Hampsey also emphasized the importance of physician autonomy and local decision-making.This approach reflects the role of community-based medical groups within value-based healthcare. While technology and analytics can provide information and operational support, physicians remain responsible for clinical decisions and patient care.
The expanded partnership is therefore designed to provide infrastructure around physicians while allowing Springfield Clinic to retain its local clinical leadership.
CEO Highlights Expanded Partnership
Tim O’Rourke, chief executive officer of agilon health, said the company was pleased to welcome Springfield Clinic to Senior Health Connect ACO.O’Rourke described the expansion as an extension of the organizations’ shared commitment to improving care for seniors.
He also pointed to the ACO model’s ability to create additional opportunities to focus on quality, care coordination and outcomes.For agilon, expanding the Springfield Clinic partnership allows the company to extend its value-based care infrastructure to another group of Medicare beneficiaries in Illinois.
The company expects the collaboration to support preventive care and disease management while helping physicians coordinate care for a broader patient population.
Connecting Primary and Specialty Care
Springfield Clinic’s scale provides an important foundation for the partnership.With more than 650 physicians and advanced practitioners across more than 80 specialties, the organization has a broad range of clinical capabilities.
The presence of both primary and specialty care providers can support coordinated approaches to patient care.Older adults with complex medical needs may require treatment from several specialists in addition to their primary care physician. Coordinating information and care plans among these providers can help create a more connected healthcare experience.
The ACO model provides an organizational framework for that coordination.Technology and analytics can also help identify patients who may need additional attention, while clinical pathways can provide structured approaches to managing specific chronic conditions.
Reducing Unnecessary Healthcare Spending
In addition to improving care quality, the ACO model is designed to address healthcare spending.Under accountable care arrangements, organizations have incentives to deliver appropriate services efficiently and reduce unnecessary utilization while maintaining or improving quality.
agilon’s reported savings from its ACOs illustrate the financial component of its model. The company said its ACOs generated more than $510 million in gross savings since 2021, including $125 million in savings to the Medicare Trust Fund.For Springfield Clinic, participation in Senior Health Connect ACO provides another opportunity to align clinical care with these value-based objectives.
The focus is on reducing avoidable healthcare spending while supporting patients’ health needs.This can include identifying care gaps, improving chronic disease management, supporting preventive care and helping patients receive the appropriate services in the appropriate setting.
Expanding the Value-Based Care Model
The partnership also reflects the continued evolution of value-based healthcare in the United States.Healthcare organizations and physician groups are increasingly exploring models that place greater emphasis on outcomes, care coordination and population health management.
Traditional fee-for-service models generally compensate providers based on the volume of services delivered. Value-based arrangements introduce additional considerations related to quality, outcomes and total cost of care.ACO models are one mechanism through which physician groups can participate in this transition.
For organizations such as Springfield Clinic, participation requires infrastructure capable of tracking patient populations, identifying opportunities for intervention and coordinating care across providers.agilon provides technology, analytics and operational support designed to help physician groups build these capabilities.
Building on a Long-Term Relationship
The expanded ACO agreement is the latest development in a relationship that began in 2024.Springfield Clinic initially partnered with agilon to transition toward a full-risk, value-based care model supporting approximately 18,000 senior Medicare Advantage patients.
The new expansion extends the relationship to a larger Medicare population and adds Traditional Medicare beneficiaries to the partnership’s scope.This continuity gives both organizations an opportunity to build on systems, workflows and relationships established through the existing partnership.
Rather than launching an entirely new relationship, the ACO expansion extends an established collaboration into another segment of the Medicare population.The expansion of the partnership between agilon health and Springfield Clinic represents a broader effort to extend coordinated, value-based care to more seniors across Illinois.
Through Senior Health Connect ACO and participation in the Medicare Shared Savings Program, Springfield Clinic is expected to gain additional technology, analytics and operational support as it serves approximately 21,000 additional Traditional Medicare beneficiaries.
The organizations plan to focus on preventive care, earlier intervention, chronic disease management and improved coordination.
agilon’s existing experience with accountable care provides the infrastructure for the expanded relationship. Its reported financial savings and quality performance demonstrate the outcomes the company says its ACO model has achieved in previous years.For Springfield Clinic, the partnership builds upon a physician-led approach to value-based care that has been developing since the organization launched its ACO in 2015.
The collaboration also demonstrates the growing role of technology and data in supporting population health. AI-enabled platforms, clinical pathways and analytics can provide physicians with information to help identify patient needs and coordinate care, while clinicians retain responsibility for medical decisions.
As the healthcare industry continues to move toward value-based models, partnerships between community physician organizations and specialized healthcare technology companies are becoming an important part of the transition.
For patients, the intended focus remains on more coordinated and personalized care. For physicians, the model provides additional tools and operational support to manage larger populations. For the healthcare system, the objective is to improve quality while addressing unnecessary spending.
The expanded relationship between agilon health and Springfield Clinic brings these objectives together through Senior Health Connect ACO and extends the organizations’ work to a larger population of Medicare beneficiaries throughout the communities Springfield Clinic serves in Illinois.
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