On October 21, 2020, CMS announced that it is pushing the implementation of its radiation oncology payment model (RO Model) back from January 1, 2021 to July 1, 2021 in response to industry concerns regarding the implementation timeframe. The RO Model is an episode-based payment initiative.

The RO Model is intended to test whether bundled, prospective, site neutral, modality agnostic, episode-based payments to physician group practices, hospital outpatient departments, and freestanding radiation therapy centers for radiotherapy episodes of care reduces Medicare expenditures while preserving or enhancing the quality of care for Medicare beneficiaries. The RO Model has a five-year model performance period.

As previously reported, CMS released the final rule for this payment model in September 2020. Multiple stakeholders had expressed concern over the timeframe for implementation after the final rule was released. For example, the American Society for Radiation Oncology (ASTRO) responded to the final rule expressing that it viewed the January 1, 2021 implementation timeframe as “untenable for practices already enduring staff shortages and other challenges due to the COVID-19 pandemic.”