This past December, Newton, Mass.-based Atrius Health — the largest independent non-profit physician group in Massachusetts — was officially selected as a Pioneer Accountable Care Organization. In an effort to change the way patients and costs are managed in the healthcare system, Atrius Health is taking on a large responsibility — one that Gene Lindsey, MD, president and CEO of Atrius Health, takes very seriously.

Movement toward bundled payments and accountable care organizations could give hospitals and healthcare providers the upper hand when negotiating medical implant prices, shifting the current climate for providers when dealing with medical device manufacturers, according to a report in the Wall Street Journal.

Whether or not broad-based healthcare reform is enacted in the near future, provider payment reform that encourages integration of healthcare delivery has bipartisan support but faces hurdles, said several speakers at a recent National Health Policy Conference co-sponsored by AcademyHealth and Health Affairs.