© 1999 by Oxford University Press
Journal of the National Cancer Institute, Vol. 91, No. 15, 1272-1274,
August 4, 1999
© 1999 Oxford University Press
NEWS |
For-Profit Treatment Centers: Trailblazing A New Model of Care?
With the recent $715 million merger of Houston-based American Oncology Resources and the Dallas-based Physicians Reliance Network Inc., US Oncology a new for-profit cancer treatment management company is poised to become the largest single purveyor of cancer care in the United States.
The hybrid company is the newest player in an industry that saw the number of new U.S. outpatient cancer centers double to more than 800 in the last 3 years, and is the first to attempt to establish outpatient centers as a new model of physician-managed for-profit cancer care.
For some, the merger represents a natural evolution of health care delivery: expanded access
through efficient, cost-effective, community-based care run by physicians who partner with
hospital-based facilities. But for others, this approach represents profit-driven entrepreneurs
skimming away only the most profitable patients from hospital-based centers and providing
access to only the most lucrative clinical
Treatment Giant
Economic Viability
"Money Losers"
Ethical Concerns
Advocacy Impact