Radiation Oncology Physician Practice in the Modern Era: A Statewide Analysis of Medicare Reimbursement

INTRODUCTION: In recent years, major changes in health care policy have affected oncology practice dramatically. In this context, we examined the effect of practice structure on volume and payments for radiation oncology services using the 2013 Medicare Provider Utilization and Payment Data: Physician and Other Supplier Public Use File (POSPUF) for New York State radiation oncologists. METHODS: The Medicare POSPUF data was queried, and individual physicians were classified into freestanding office-based and hospital-based practices. Freestanding practices were further subdivided into urology, hematology-oncology, and other ownership structures. Additional variables analyzed included gender, year of medical school graduation, and Herfindahl-Hirschman Index (HHI). Statistical analyses were performed to assess the impact of the above-mentioned variables on reimbursements. RESULTS: There were 236 New York State radiation oncologists identified in the 2013 Medicare POSPUF dataset, with a total reimbursement of $91,525,855. Among freestanding centers, the mean global Medicare reimbursement was $832,974. Global Medicare reimbursement was $1,328,743 for urology practices, compared to $754,567 for hematology-oncology practices and $691,821 for other ownership structures (p < 0.05). The mean volume of on-treatment visits (OTVs) was 240.5 per year, varying by practice structure. The mean annual OTV volumes for urology practices, hematology-oncology practices, other freestanding practices, and hospital-based programs were 424.6, 311.5, 247.5, and 209.3, respectively. After correcting for gender, physician experience, and HHI, practice structure was predictive of freestanding reimbursement and on treatment visit volume. CONCLUSION: Higher Medicare payment was significantly predicted by the type of practice structure, with urology-based and hematology-oncology practices accounting for the highest total reimbursement and OTV volume.