UPDATE 1-U.S. Medicare test program saved hundreds of million of dollars-study

A U.S. government test program with doctors and hospitals slowed healthcare spending in Medicare coverage for the elderly and disabled by hundreds of millions of dollars in 2012 and 2013 but savings were less in the second year, a study released Monday said. The Journal of the American Medical Association study looked at beneficiaries in 32 Pioneer Accountable Care Organizations , in which hospitals and doctors follow 33 quality and care standards for Medicare fee-for-service patients.