Four groups are asking policymakers to address the "urgent threat facing cancer treatment access" by changing Medicare payments.
Leaders of the American College of Radiation Oncology, the American College of Radiology, the American Society for Radiation Oncology and the American Society of Clinical Oncology partnered to reform and expand radiation oncology Medicare payments, according to a Jan. 9 news release from the American Society for Radiation Oncology.
They propose a new payment system called Radiation Oncology Case Rate, which would change payment from per fraction to per patient, reverse declines in Medicare payments and create a stable payment system that would lead to higher quality care and reduced disparities.
Since 2013, radiation therapy service payments have been cut 23%, according to the news release, with further cuts coming. The organizations believe that payment reform is essential for the future of the specialty.