McKesson buys Portico to position itself in ACO market

McKesson Corp. has announced that it is buying health plan software vendor Portico Systems for $90 million to help position the company in the market for accountable care organizations (ACOs).

"The ability to create new products that use value-based reimbursement to align payers and providers on achieving the right outcomes is a key strategic imperative," Emad Rizk, president of McKesson Health Solutions, said in a statement. "Portico will further enhance McKesson's ability to help organizations efficiently navigate and manage increasingly complex delivery systems."

Portico helps reduce administrative, medical and IT expenses for companies, so its acquisition by McKesson will combine a "unique set" of financial management competencies for payers and ACOs, including claims auditing and decision management tools and connectivity solutions, McKesson said.

The unified organization will be able to help payers optimize medical costs and quality, accelerate availability of health plan products tailored for targeted customer segments, align provider reimbursement as well as ensure end-to-end integrity, performance and transparency across the payment continuum, according to Portico. It also will help payers reduce administrative costs through workflow-based automation and integration.

As part of the deal, McKesson will pay Portico $5 million on achievement of performance milestones, reports Reuters.

For more information:
- read the Reuters article
- see the Portico announcement
- check out the McKesson statement

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