Oncology

Coverage of our peer-reviewed research and news reporting in the healthcare and mainstream press.

The Supreme Court says insurers are owed $12 billion under the Affordable Care Act; a study finds those with cancer are at higher risk from coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19); a survey shows millions would avoid seeking care for COVID-19 due to cost.

Delays in reporting Oncology Care Model results from performance periods creates tremendous uncertainty, said Ray Page, DO, PhD, president and director of research at The Center for Cancer and Blood Disorders.

Innovations to promote communication between primary care providers, oncologists are vital to delineate distinct roles in oncology patient management, said Kelly Filchner, MSN, director at Fox Chase Cancer Center Partners.

Despite the immediate distraction from coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), panelists at the 2020 Virtual Community Oncology Conference said community oncologists must keep pressure on pharmacy benefit managers (PBMs) as the 2020 campaign heats up—lest they lose the momentum to rein PBM practices within the umbrella of drug pricing reform.

The bright spot of telemedicine's success during the coronavirus disease 2019 pandemic cannot overshadow the stresses on patients and practices, which will both have ongoing challenges when the pandemic ends, said panelists during a legislative update on day 2 of the 2020 Virtual Community Oncology Conference, convened by the Community Oncology Alliance.

This week, the top managed care news included HHS' plans to allocate the remaining $70 billion in COVID-19 funding to providers; an analysis finding aggressive social distancing measures economically justified; highlights from this week's virtual Community Oncology Conference.

Oncology practices in 2-sided risk arrangements have reported mixed results, pointing to the need for more time to make the transition, said Michael Diaz, MD, president of Community Oncology Alliance.

Many patients when they start their cancer therapy get so ingrained in the cancer world that their oncologist just becomes their main point of contact, but we have to do a better job at letting the patients know that the PCP still is an integral part of their care, said Kelly Filchner, MSN, director at Fox Chase Cancer Center Partners.

The American Journal of Managed Care® (AJMC®) recently spoke with Dinesh Kapur, MD, of Eastern Connecticut Hematology and Oncology, also known as ECHO, an advanced community oncology conference. Kapur spoke about how the value of community oncology, clinicial trials, and how staff are spending remote work days developing artificial intelligence (AI) tools for predictive patient analytics to improve care.

Douglas M. Long, MBA, vice president of industry relations for IQVIA, surveyed the effects of COVID-19 as he kicked off AMCP eLearning Days, a webinar series held in place of the annual meeting of the Academy of Managed Care Pharmacy (AMCP).

In this preview interview for this year’s virtual 2020 Community Oncology Conference, The American Journal of Managed Care® speaks with Kathy Oubre, MS, chief operating officer of Pontchartrain Cancer Center in Louisiana, on why it is her privilege to work with patients who have cancer, as well as her thoughts on telehealth after the pandemic and why being in a hurricane-prone area necessitates healthcare that is flexible.

Individuals should register for Community Oncology Alliance's virtual meeting to hear "amazing" speakers present groundbreaking research, said Lalan Wilfong, MD, medical oncologist and vice president of value-based care and quality programs at Texas Oncology.

Networking with other practices, sharing ideas, and getting physicians involved in the process can aid community practices moving to alternative payment models (APMs), said Michael Diaz, MD, president of Community Oncology Alliance.

Policy, clinical, and targeted therapy updates in oncology.

The Association of Community Cancer Centers held its 46th Annual Meeting and Cancer Center Business Summit March 4 to 6 in Washington, DC.

“Quest for Value: Advancing Oncology Value-based Care,” this year’s first installment in the Institute for Value-Based Medicine (IVBM) from The American Journal of Managed Care®, zeroed in seniors, a population that’s growing not just in Florida but across the United States. Older Americans are more likely to develop cancer, but thanks to better detection and treatment, they are more likely to survive cancer, too.

Payers view the National Comprehensive Cancer Network (NCCN) guidelines as a gold standard for making reimbursement decisions, according to a panel of experts who spoke recently about biosimilar uptake.

Patients with cancer are reporting that they have faced treatment delays due to the novel coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19); the Trump administration reached an agreement with 3M Co. to produce nearly 167 million face masks in the next 3 months; US hospitals cite lack of supplies, testing coordination as major obstacles during the pandemic, according to an HHS survey.

“These are times of unprecedented and unimaginable challenges for our health care system."

"We want to make sure practices have time to learn, understand, adapt, and modify, to a new Oncology Care Model," said Michael Diaz, MD, president of Community Oncology Alliance.

Racial and ethnic biases held by research and clinical professionals could contribute to low minority participation in oncology clinical trials, according to a study recently published in Cancer, a journal from the American Cancer Society.

We think that the ACCC is uniquely positioned to bridge the gap between the needs in clinical trials and the patients who are in the community. Most clinical oncology is delivered in the community. That's where the patients are, that's where the need is, said Randall Oyer, MD, medical director of the Oncology Program at Penn Medicine Lancaster General Health and president of ACCC.

There has been significant improvement in payers' understanding of site of care issues, but steps still need to be taken to address these issues, said Lucio Gordan, MD, president and managing physician at Florida Cancer Specialists.

Ensuring that all frontline clinicians are equipped, confident, and engaged in executing skilled communication, which is at the core of palliative care, will make a significant difference for how value-based care unfolds, how payment reform happens, and how the lived experience plays out for patients and families to be a better one, said Rebecca Kirch, JD, executive vice president, Health Care, Quality and Value, National Patient Advocate Foundation.