Trends in hospital and office-based chemotherapy administration 2005-2012 for Medicare and commercially insured patients.

274 Background: The 2013 Community Oncology Practice Impact Report notes an increase of 20% in the number of community clinics closing since 2011. The objective of this study was to examine trends in location and reimbursement of chemotherapy in office-based (OBS) and outpatient hospital settings (OHS). Methods: Using the MarketScan Research Databases, first administrations of bevacizumab and trastuzumab were identified from 1/1/2005 through 12/31/2012 for patients with commercial or employer-sponsored supplemental Medicare insurance. Bevacizumab claims were excluded if the claim had a diagnosis related to macular degeneration or other eye disease. Claims for both drugs were excluded if the reimbursed amount was less than $100. Chemotherapy administration reimbursements were identified through CPT codes on the same day as the day as the drug charge. All claims were identified as occurring in OB or OHS. Results: The percent of bevacizumab claims occurring in OHS increased from 6 to 34% among Medicare claims, and from 15 to 42% among commercial claims from 2005 to 2012. For trastuzumab, the increases were 4 to 35%, and 10 to 35% in Medicare and commercial claims, respectively. OHS reimbursements were consistently higher than OBS reimbursements for chemotherapy administration and drug for both drugs across both payers. Conclusions: Although the differential in reimbursements between OHS and OBS declined in the most recent two years, OHS reimbursements remained substantially higher while the shift in chemotherapy administration from OBS to OHS has continued through 2012. Continued attention to reimbursement differences between OHS and OBS is warranted and additional research is needed to more fully document the impact on patients, providers, and payers. [Table: see text]