Every person in the United States receives high-quality, affordable health care through a coordinated, value-based delivery system.

Elevate the voice and experience of visionary physician leaders and their organizations to improve American health care through research, education and communication.

When physicians work in collaboration and coordination with each other and with other healthcare providers, such as hospitals, specialists, and skilled nursing facilities, they can provide superior quality health care to their patients and communities.

When physicians are paid based on how they improve health and not on the volume of services they provide patients, they are incentivized to improve and maintain their patients health through more effective prevention, diagnosis, and rapid intervention.

When physicians use 21st century technology to augment their clinical skills, communicate with one another, and access patient health information at each point of contact, patients receive better, safer medical care and treatments based on proof.

CAPP groups and health systems are physician-led, therefore we keep the needs of both doctors and patients top of mind. When physicians provide strong leadership in the healthcare delivery system by taking accountability for quality and service, patients benefit.

Through our ability to continually measure and monitor how we improve the health and lives of our patients, CAPP groups can demonstrate our value to our patients and our communities.

The Council of Accountable Physician Practices (CAPP), an affiliate of AMGA Foundation, was founded in 2002 by Francis J. Crosson, MD. At the time, Dr. Crosson was the founding Executive Director of The Permanente Federation, the national organization of the Permanente Medical Groups at Kaiser Permanente.

Dr. Crosson and the leaders of other prominent multispecialty medical groups often compared experiences and realized that their organizations shared many values, including a commitment to systems improvement in health care, physician leadership, the willingness to embrace accountability for delivering quality care and for being stewards of healthcare resources. They all believed that organized physician group practices are uniquely positioned to affect change in the American healthcare system.

Dr. Crosson and the physician leaders of Group Health Permanente, Palo Alto Medical Foundation, Sharp Rees-Stealy Medical Group, HealthCare Partners Medical Group, HealthPartners, Henry Ford Medical Group, Austin Regional Clinic, The Cleveland Clinic, The Lahey Clinic and Virginia Mason formed the initial nucleus of the Council of Accountable Physician Practices.

Since that first formation, additional high-performing health systems have joined CAPP. Together, our groups work to foster the development and recognition of accountable physician-led multispecialty medical groups and health systems as models for transforming the healthcare system.

In 2012, Dr. Robert Pearl, former CEO of The Permanente Medical Group, assumed the role of chair of the CAPP board. Under the leadership of Dr. Pearl, the vision and mission of CAPP have changed to reflect the new healthcare landscape and provide the framework for the current activities of the Council.

Since 2014, CAPP has focused on building understanding among policymakers, the media and consumers about the benefits or organized, accountable health care. In 2015, CAPP launched Better Together Health, a series of events designed to help inform the national dialogue on care delivery.

CAPP also sponsors research with such academics as Elliot Fisher (who has been credited for coining the term “accountable care organizations” based on his work with CAPP’s “accountable physician practices”), Steve Shortell, Alain Enthoven, and Robert Mechanic, among others, to explore how a physician-group organization model impacts healthcare outcomes.  The objective of CAPP’s consumer and physician market research is to measure understanding and acceptance of the benefits of accountable care.  For more information about CAPP research, please visit our research page.