Practice-Level Spending Variation for Radiation Treatment Episodes Among Older Adults With Cancer

What were the trends and practice-level variations in radiation treatment spending among Medicare beneficiaries with cancer from 2009 to 2020?In this cross-sectional study of 1.9 million fee-for-service Medicare beneficiaries across the US receiving radiation therapy, considerable variation in standardized radiation spending was identified at the practice level. This variation persisted after adjusting for factors such as year, patient demographics, cancer type, geography, radiation technology, and number of fractions.The practice-level variation in standardized radiation-specific spending that persisted in local health care markets suggests that there may be opportunities for savings under population-based payment models.

Corresponding Author: Miranda B. Lam, MD, MBA, Department of Radiation Oncology, Brigham and Women’s Hospital, Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, 75 Francis St, Boston, MA 02115 (miranda_lam@dfci.harvard.edu).

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