On June 7, AdvaMed submitted comments to the Center for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) on its Radiation Oncology (RO) Model proposed rule proposing to indefinitely delay the start date of the RO Model. The Center for Medicare and Medicaid Innovation (CMMI, or the Innovation Center) spent several years developing the RO Model, which creates a 90-day episode-of-care for 15 disease sites with the goal of providing higher quality care to patients while reducing Medicare costs. Congress has delayed implementation of the RO Model twice due to the ongoing COVID-19 public health emergency and other implementation concerns. In this comment letter, AdvaMed supported CMS’ proposal to delay the RO Model start date until future rulemaking while also expressing our commitment to value-based payment and its ability to provide stable, predictable payments for radiation oncology that cannot be realized under the fee-for-service systems.
For more information on AdvaMed’s efforts around radiation therapy coverage and reimbursement, please contact Kirsten Tullia.