More than 100 bipartisan members of Congress wrote the Biden administration earlier this fall objecting to the excessive radiation therapy payment cuts under the RO Model and Medicare's 2022 fee schedule. Led by representatives Brian Fitzpatrick (R-Pa.) and Brian Higgins (D-N.Y.) (view the House members' letter here); senators Debbie Stabenow (D-Mich.) and Richard Burr (R-N.C.) (view the Senate members' letter here); and representatives Tony Cárdenas (D-Calif.) and Bobby Rush (D-Ill.) (view the letter from members of the Congressional Black Caucus, Congressional Hispanic Caucus, Congressional Asian Pacific American Caucus and Congressional Native American Caucus here), the letters emphasized that patients will suffer the impact of severe Medicare cuts to cancer treatments. The cuts, they said, "could have chilling effects on patient access to life-saving care" and would "disproportionately impact vulnerable communities that already face poor access to cancer screening and care."

Led by ASTRO, the radiation oncology stakeholder community has consistently expressed concerns that the CMS model falls short of what is needed to achieve the promise of an alternative payment model for radiation oncology. "ASTRO has outlined specific changes to the model that would incentivize high-quality care while still generating savings for Medicare," said Dr. Dawson. "With significant modifications, the RO Model could represent a meaningful approach for radiation oncology to participate in the evolving world of health care payment reform. Delaying the model until 2023 provides time for Congress to work with radiation oncology stakeholders to ensure the model's success and protect patient access to cancer care."

ABOUT ASTRO
The American Society for Radiation Oncology (ASTRO) is the largest radiation oncology society in the world, with nearly 10,000 members who are physicians, nurses, biologists, physicists, radiation therapists, dosimetrists and other health care professionals who specialize in treating patients with radiation therapies.

Back to HCB News

Rad Oncology Homepage