The Impact of Health Care Industry Consolidation on Cancer Care and Partnerships

In a presentation at the 2023 Clinical Pathways Congress with the Cancer Care Business Exchange, Ronald Barkley, MS, JD, from the Cancer Center Business Development Group; Harlan Levine, MD, president of Health Innovation and Policy at City of Hope; Barbara McAneny, MD, CEO of New Mexico Oncology Hematology Consultants and former AMA president; Todd Schonherz, CEO of the American Oncology Network; and Adria Warren, JD, partner at Foley & Lardner, discussed the impacts on oncology care from industry consolidation in health care. 

The panelists said the industry can be broken down into two key players: nontraditional players (the disruptors), and health systems or integrated delivery networks (IDNs). Both players provide primary care; however, they operate a bit differently and harbor different groups. For example, CVS Health, Walmart, and Walgreens can be considered nontraditional players, while a local/regional or cross-market organization would be considered a health system or integrated delivery network (IDN). Where the two players differ is in how they create a strategic plan for care. Disruptors will focus on digital acquisition, and less on the quality of value-based care. A good oncology network practice’s strategy will have a balance between the two: quality of care and creating profit.

Barkley and the other panelists were in agreement that over 30% of the primary care market could be owned by nontraditional players by the year 2030. This would mean that the market could be owned by Amazon, CVS Health, United Health, Walgreens, and Walmart, who are the five biggest disruptors. Hospitals need to meet patients’ needs and have a high quality of care in order to compete with other groups.

Furthermore, Dr McAneny stressed the importance of hospitals and providers not just thinking about the benefits of profit, but about the societal benefits as well: All hospitals are for-profit, because they all create a profit, but those who are socioeconomically disadvantaged still need the same high-quality care as any other patient. 

In conclusion, there are a variety of different strategies hospitals and disruptors can take to address health care industry consolidation. There is no “one size fits all” strategy—each company operates themselves in a unique way and has a different approach. “There is a lot of right in what everyone is saying, and there is a lot of wrong, and I think that it is complex . . . pharma and payers and hospitals and doctors all have things that we do well and a lot of things that we need to do better, and there’s no uniform answer to any of it,” said Harlan Levine.