Health care is 17.5 percent of the gross domestic product. Think about that for a second: For every dollar spent in the U.S., about 18 pennies go to health care. One idea to curb the actual cost of health care is the Accountable Care Organizations, or ACO.

UnitedHealthcare and Florida Accountable Care Services announced a new ACO in Orlando yesterday. And this one deals with private and commercial health insurance, not just the government.

I spoke with David Lewis, CEO of UnitedHealthcare of Central and North Florida, and Dr. Sandeep Bajaj, founder and CEO of Florida Accountable Care Services. Hit the audio at the top of the story to hear the full interview.

Bajaj on what an ACO is:

“It is asking the providers to come together to put their heads together to come up with innovative solutions so that we can mitigate the cost and elevate the quality of our patients. There are almost 400 ACOs in the country that have formed. And about 23 percent are successful. Ours is one of those.”

Lewis on why people should pay attention:

“I think this is the wave of the future. This is a recognition that the most nimble and effective practitioner in our system today is a primary care physicians, sitting in the patient office visit room with the white coat and the pad. That’s where it all starts and that’s where it all should be coordinated from.”

Hit the audio at the top of the story to hear the full interview.

Health insurer UnitedHealthcare will partner with a local doctor’s group in a move they say will lower health care costs.

The move could affect more than 20,000 people in central Florida. Accountable Care Organizations, or ACOs, were created by the Affordable Care Act, and the idea was simple: If doctors can prove they can save money without sacrificing the quality of the care, the government will give them a cut of the savings.

Starting this April, UnitedHealthcare will partner with Florida Accountable Care Services to see if their successful ACO could work for more than 20,000 central Floridians with private insurance.

“We’re learning good lessons from what these physicians have been able to successfully accomplish in the Medicare arena, and transition that into the employer-sponsored side of our business," said David Lewis, CEO of UnitedHealthcare of Central and North Florida. “There is a lot of low-hanging fruit in the system, okay? Our health care economic infrastructure is such that the sicker people are, the more money gets spent in the community.”

U.S. Sen. Bill Nelson was on hand for a ribbon-cutting Monday at a new urgent care center that will be used by the group. Nelson said the new venture will put a focus on the quality of care and outcomes for patients.

“Instead of the quantity of care, where the patient would go to this doctor and get one test, this doctor, maybe get the same test, another, another, and nobody coordinated with each other," Nelson said.

Florida Accountable Care Services says it saved the federal government $15 million dollars by streamlining care.

“We are excited to partner with UnitedHealthcare to apply our expertise in health care innovation and patient-centered programs to improve the health of their plan participants and advance toward overall population health management,” said Dr. Sandeep Bajaj, founder and CEO of FACS, in a statement. “Together, we expect to achieve even better health outcomes and improve patient satisfaction, while reducing the overall cost of care.”