Radiation Oncology Practice Consolidation: A Growing Trend?

TOPLINE:

Between 2015 and 2023, the number of large practices in the United States with at least 10 radiation oncologists increased by about 50%, while the number of solo practices decreased, indicating significant practice consolidation during this time, a recent analysis found. This consolidation is happening while the workforce has been steadily growing, with the percentage of radiation oncologists entering the field outpacing those retiring.

METHODOLOGY:

• The number of radiation oncologists entering the workforce has outpaced retirement rates. However, it’s unclear how this growing supply of radiation oncologists looks in the context of recent trends in practice consolidation, with a focus on rural areas and equitable access to these services.
• Researchers used data from the Center for Medicare and Medicaid Services’ Doctors and Clinicians National Downloadable File to evaluate trends in practice consolidation, the number of practices, retirements, new entries, and job changes among radiation oncologists between 2015 and 2023.
• Practices were categorized by size: Solo (one radiation oncologist), mid-size (2-10 radiation oncologists), or large (> 10 radiation oncologists).
• Practice locations were identified by zip codes and characterized as rural or urban using rural-urban continuum codes.

TAKEAWAY:

• The number of practicing radiation oncologists increased by 16% from 2015 to 2023, while the number of practices employing them declined by 13%.
• The number of large practices increased by 51%, while solo practices decreased by 27%, highlighting a trend toward consolidation.
• The average annual rate of retirement was 2.5%, whereas that of new entries was 4.1%. Retirement was higher in rural practices (3.6%), whereas new entry was lower (2.3%), potentially affecting workforce distribution.
• Job changes were most common among women, early-career physicians (6-10 years in practice), solo practitioners, and rural-based radiation oncologists, with a mean annual job change rate of 4.2%.

IN PRACTICE:

“[Radiation oncologists] are increasingly working in fewer and larger practices, indicative of a trend in practice size consolidation between 2015 and 2023,” the authors wrote. “Larger practices, which are more likely to benefit from interactions with multiple specialties and internal patient referrals, may be more financially viable and thus able to obtain significant market share.”

SOURCE:

The study was led by Sifan Grace Lu, SUNY Downstate Health Sciences University, New York, and was published online in the International Journal of Radiation Oncology, Biology, Physics.

LIMITATIONS:

The study could not determine whether the increased supply of radiation oncologists matched changes in demand. The methodology may have overestimated retirement rates and underestimated job change rates given the inability to track radiation oncologists who moved to non-Medicare billing practices. Additionally, the use of tax identification numbers for practice identification may have led to an overestimation of job change rates and underestimation of the size of large practices.

DISCLOSURES:

The study did not receive any specific funding. The authors reported having no relevant conflicts of interest.

This article was created using several editorial tools, including AI, as part of the process. Human editors reviewed this content before publication.