Questions With OCM Participation? Flatiron Health Could Provide Answers

It’s been more than a year since CMS introduced the Oncology Care Model (OCM), the first specialty-specific alternative payment model introduced for physician practices that administer chemotherapy. Flatiron Health, a provider of technology platforms to the oncology community, has announced the development of a cloud-based electronic health record (OncoEMR) and an analytics tool (OncoAnalytics), to support reporting requirements for those clinics that will be selected to participate in the OCM.

Bobby Green, MD, senior vice president, Clinical Oncology, Flatiron Health, said in a statement, “Given the evolving reimbursement landscape, we planned for several OncologyCloud software platform enhancements that will allow cancer centers to easily participate in value-based care programs like OCM as soon as the programs begin.”

According to the company’s press release, both OncoEMR and OncoAnalytics have been updated to suit the needs of the OCM reporting. These upgrades to the tools include,

• Automated reporting of all OCM practice-reported quality measures
• Embedded, evidence-based regimens and pathways at the point of care
• Seamless ability to create a care plan that contains the 13 components in the Institute of Medicine Care Management Plan.

OCM incentivizes participating clinics to provide quality care at lower costs through an episode-based payment model, with incentives for integrated and coordinated care. The model encourages physicians to practice shared decision-making with the enrolled beneficiaries, and base treatment decisions on the best available evidence.

CMS wanted broader adoption of the model by other payers as well to allow value-based care transformation at the practice level. OCM payments will utilize a 2-part payment system for participating practices: a monthly per-beneficiary-per-month payment ($160) for the entire duration of the episode, and a performance-based payment for episodes of chemotherapy care.

According to CMS, applicants for OCM will be notified of their selection status any time now, in Spring 2016.