CMS Announces Oncology Care Model (OCM) Participants, ACCC Offers Resources and Expertise

ROCKVILLE, MD. – On June 29, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) announced the nearly 200 physician group practices and 17 health insurance companies selected to participate in the Oncology Care Model (OCM). A great number of OCM participating practices and hospitals are members of the Association of Community Cancer Centers (ACCC).

To support OCM practices, ACCC recently launched the OCM Collaborative virtual community to share tips, tools, and resources as providers navigate this new transformational cancer care delivery and payment model. It also provides a platform for OCM participants to network and have questions answered by healthcare industry experts.

“Learning from peers is critical to succeeding in any payment reform initiative,” said Steve D’Amato, BSPharm, Chair of the OCM Collaborative offered by ACCC. “ACCC’s new OCM Collaborative virtual community will help providers navigate the new payment model and connect users to share best practices and key learnings.”

According to CMS, the Medicare arm of the Oncology Care Model will include more than 3,200 oncologists and cover approximately 155,000 Medicare beneficiaries nationwide. Participants include practices and hospitals located in urban, suburban and rural areas. Other payers, in addition to Medicare, are commercial insurers that will align their oncology payment models with Medicare’s model and support OCM participants in their practice transformation efforts.

“The OCM represents a big shift to value-based payments and will redefine the way oncology care will be delivered and reimbursed,” said Christian Downs, JD, MHA, Executive Director of ACCC. “As a leader in community-based oncology, ACCC is proud to support this initiative through the OCM Collaborative and looks forward to providing key insights on value-based payments to other areas of healthcare.”

Information on participating practices and payers can be found on the OCM website: http://innovation.cms.gov/initiatives/Oncology-Care/.

The online OCM Collaborative virtual community offered by ACCC is an invitation-only platform. If you have questions, or if your program is participating in the OCM and you have not received an invitation to join the OCM Collaborative, please contact Leah Ralph, ACCC Director of Health Policy, at LRalph@accc-cancer.org.