National Policy Resources—Local Advocacy Results

As cancer care professionals who experience the challenges of providing quality cancer care first-hand, VAHO members are well positioned to educate decision-makers on how coverage and reimbursement issues affect community oncology. State and federal legislation can have a significant impact on the financial viability of local cancer programs, which is why it's so important that our members make their voices heard.

In an effort to provide resources needed to effectively advocate on the issues that are important to them, our redesigned advocacy webpage features activity from the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS), national healthcare coverage through the Association of Community Cancer Centers (ACCC), local news articles and webinars, and more.

We want to hear from you! If there is a specific piece of legislation you want to know more about, an important resource we're missing, or if you want to get more involved, please contact us!

Federal Advocacy

VAHO Joins Coalition Letter Urging Addition of the Cures 2.0 Concept Paper Title IV Provisions in the Next COVID-19 Relief Package

The Virginia Association of Hematologists and Oncologists (VAHO) joined in a coalition letter to congressional leadership urging that Congress include the 21st Century Cures 2.0 concept paper, recently released by Representatives Diana DeGette and Fred Upton in upcoming legislation to further address the COVID-19 public health crisis. Specifically the letter urges leadership to include policy to provide Medicaid coverage of the routine care costs of clinical trials participation for patients with life-threatening conditions in every state. This critical protection is championed by Representatives Ben Ray Luján and Gus Bilirakis in the Clinical Treatment Act (H.R. 913).

COVID-19 Clinical Trials Coalition Letter

FROM THE ACCCBUZZ BLOG

An Update on Healthcare Legislation at the State Level
By Christian G. Downs, MHA, JD
March 22, 2023
If you are looking for legislative action, look no further than your state's legislatures. Most—if not all—states have had issues relating to oncology care and healthcare in general come up during their 2023 sessions.
ACCC Announces its 2023 Advocacy Agenda
March 07, 2023
For 2023, ACCC members have identified four core areas of focus (e.g., reimbursement, utilization management, provider-patient choice), among a larger set of issues and concerns, that the association will be supporting this year.
ACCC Recognizes National Caregivers Day: Analyzing a Mental Health Crisis
February 17, 2023
Today is National Caregivers Day, and ACCCBuzz analyzes the current mental health crisis that is affecting the caregivers of loved ones everywhere.

Advocacy In the News

CMS Releases Final Rule to the Radiation Oncology Model

On November 2, 2021, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) released the CY 2022 Hospital Outpatient Prospective Payment and Ambulatory Surgical Center Payment Systems final rule (CMS-1753-F). This announcement includes the finalized modifications to the Radiation Oncology (RO) Model.

The RO Model is set to begin January 1, 2022, and end December 31, 2026. The proposed rule includes the summarized modifications below:

Adjustment to the pricing methodology (updated baseline period is 2017 to 2019 and lowered discounts to 3.5 and 4.5) for the professional component and technical component, respectively
Removal of brachytherapy from included modalities
Removal of liver cancer from included cancer types
Finalization of cases in which a beneficiary switches from traditional fee-for-service (FFS) to Medicare Advantage during an episode and before treatment is complete. CMS will consider this an incomplete episode and radiation therapy services will be paid under FFS.
Modification to the current Pennsylvania Rural Health Model (PARHM) overlap policy to only exclude hospitals participating in the model, no just PARHM-eligible hospitals
Addition of an overlap policy for the Community Track of the CHART Model
Addition of an extreme and uncontrollable circumstances policy.

For additional information on the RO Model and CMS' final rules, visit the RO Model website or read more on thefinal rule. For questions on the model or for participants needing their model ID, contact RadiationTherapy@cms.hhs.gov.

Posted 11/3/2021

National Policy Resources—Local Advocacy Results

Federal Advocacy

FROM THE ACCCBUZZ BLOG

Advocacy In the News

CMS Releases Final Rule to the Radiation Oncology Model

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