{"status":"ok","message-type":"work","message-version":"1.0.0","message":{"indexed":{"date-parts":[[2026,9,17]],"date-time":"2026-09-17T05:45:56Z","timestamp":1789623956408,"version":"build-2803163510"},"reference-count":31,"publisher":"American Medical Association (AMA)","issue":"15","content-domain":{"domain":[],"crossmark-restriction":false},"short-container-title":["JAMA"],"published-print":{"date-parts":[[2026,4,21]]},"abstract":"\n Importance<\/jats:title>\n The Oncology Care Model (OCM) was the Centers for Medicare &amp;amp; Medicaid Services\u2019 first cancer-focused alternative payment model, running from 2016 to 2022. The OCM aimed to reduce Medicare spending and improve quality of care for patients receiving chemotherapy.<\/jats:p>\n <\/jats:sec>\n \n Objective<\/jats:title>\n To evaluate the association of the OCM with changes in Medicare spending, utilization, and quality of care.<\/jats:p>\n <\/jats:sec>\n \n Design, Setting, and Participants<\/jats:title>\n Difference-in-differences (DID) regression analysis of 6-month chemotherapy episodes attributed to practices voluntarily participating in the OCM or propensity-matched comparison practices, adjusted for beneficiary, episode, practice, and regional characteristics. Episodes for fee-for-service Medicare beneficiaries were grouped into baseline (initiated January 2014-January 2016) and intervention (initiated July 2016-June 2022) periods.<\/jats:p>\n <\/jats:sec>\n \n Main Outcomes and Measures<\/jats:title>\n Total episode payments (Medicare spending for Parts A, B, and D, excluding OCM Monthly Enhanced Oncology Services [MEOS] payments); episode payments for Medicare Parts A, B, and D, hospitalizations, emergency department visits, and measures of quality.<\/jats:p>\n <\/jats:sec>\n \n Results<\/jats:title>\n The study population included 739\u202f735 Medicare beneficiaries (mean age, 73.2 [SD, 8.6] years; 59.4% female; 1\u202f746\u202f368 episodes) undergoing chemotherapy (ie, traditional cytotoxic therapy, targeted therapy, immunotherapy, and hormonal therapy) at 202 OCM practices and 830\u202f165 beneficiaries (mean age, 73.1 [SD, 8.8] years; 56.6% female; 1\u202f919\u202f516 episodes) at 534 comparison practices. Total episode payments increased from $29\u202f206 (baseline period) to $36\u202f190 (intervention period) for OCM episodes and from $28\u202f788 to $36\u202f388 for comparison episodes, for an OCM-associated spending change of \u2212$616 [90% CI, \u2212$912 to \u2212$321]). Reductions in total episode payments increased over time (\u2212$1282 in the final 6-month performance period). Statistically significant spending reductions were observed for Part A (DID, \u2212$176 [90% CI, \u2212$288 to \u2212$63]) and Part B (DID, \u2212$340 [90% CI, \u2212$529 to \u2212$149]) but not for Part D (DID, \u2212$53 [90% CI, \u2212$216 to $111]). The OCM was not associated with significant differences in hospitalizations, emergency department visits, or quality. Accounting for MEOS payments and performance-based incentive payments, the OCM resulted in an estimated net loss to Medicare of $639 million over 6 years.<\/jats:p>\n <\/jats:sec>\n \n Conclusions and Relevance<\/jats:title>\n The OCM was associated with modest reductions in Medicare payments during cancer treatment episodes without significant changes in care quality; payment reductions increased during the program\u2019s last 3 years. However, the OCM incurred a net loss because these estimated savings were exceeded by enhanced services payments and performance-based payments to practices.<\/jats:p>\n <\/jats:sec>","DOI":"10.1001\/jama.2026.2075","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2026,3,25]],"date-time":"2026-03-25T15:30:48Z","timestamp":1774452648000},"page":"1332","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":7,"title":["The Oncology Care Model and Medicare Payments, Utilization, and Quality"],"prefix":"10.1001","volume":"335","author":[{"given":"Gabriel A.","family":"Brooks","sequence":"first","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Medicine, Geisel School of Medicine, Lebanon, New Hampshire"},{"name":"Dartmouth Cancer Center, Lebanon, New Hampshire"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Matthew","family":"Trombley","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Abt Global, Cambridge, 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Technology, Falls Church, Virginia"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Pang-Hsiang","family":"Liu","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Health Care Policy, Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Derek","family":"Hoodin","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Abt Global, Cambridge, Massachusetts"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Colin","family":"Doyle","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"The Lewin Group, Falls Church, Virginia"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Carol","family":"Simon","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"The Lewin Group, Falls Church, Virginia"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Nancy L.","family":"Keating","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Health Care Policy, Harvard Medical School, Boston, 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