Barry Russo Discusses Challenges of Juggling OCM and MIPS

Many oncology practices are still trying to understand the new oncology care model (OCM) structure and focus on data reporting as they simultaneously prepare to adapt to the Merit-based Incentive Payment System (MIPS), said Barry Russo, CEO of The Center for Cancer & Blood Disorders.

Transcript (slightly modified)

How is your practice collecting and using data from quality measures?

We’re still trying to understand all the nuances to it. We’re not sure we’re going to be willing or understanding the two-sided risk of the OCM product so we probably will, if we’re still as unclear about it when it comes time for MIPS, we will probably be a MIPS practice. We haven’t read through all 23 or 2500 pages of what exists out there, but conceptually, we kind of understand where they’re going with it. Our focus is to understand the data reporting and try and optimize that as much as we possibly can.

I wish OCM—because in the midst of OCM, we had to flip to a MIPS mindset—I wish outside of double-sided risk that OCM would have some, for some more reasonable period of time, have an opportunity to be an APM and not have to flip into thinking about MIPS, but it doesn’t look like that’s going to be the case for us. Unless we’re willing to take two-sided risk, which, it’s way too early for us to understand and know that yet.