Advancing Bundled Payments Through Radiation Oncology Episodes
Health Affairs August 1, 2019
On July 10, 2019, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) announced a proposal to test bundled payments for radiation oncology services for 17 types of cancer (see exhibit 1). Although it shares features with existing bundled payment programs, the Radiation Oncology (RO) Model is positioned to launch CMS payment policy forward with novel features aimed at curbing known inefficiencies in spending on radiation therapy.
Exhibit 1: Cancer types included in the RO Model
Features Shared With Preceding CMS Bundled Payment Programs
As proposed, the RO Model shares or extends features used in preceding bundled payment programs. Like those in the ongoing Oncology Care Model (OCM), episodes in the RO Model would be triggered by initiation of...