Blog

As the COVID-19 pandemic continues to make an impact across the country, The US Oncology Network is committed to ensuring that community oncology practices have the resources and tools necessary to navigate this crisis. Through telemedicine support, IT, human resources, best practice sharing and communications we are committed to supporting practices to ensure they can continue to care for their patients during these unprecedented times.

We are diligently working on innovative strategies to support practices and their teams. Our COVID-19 task force continually monitors and evaluates to situation. Our decisions are based on recommendations from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO) and other federal, state and local agencies.

Communication with practices and patients

We have prioritized communication with The Network to ensure practices have the most up-to-date information. Weekly meetings with practice leadership and physicians are in place to provide updates and a forum to share ideas and collaborate. In addition, communication guides and templates help practices communicate with patients, staff and the media during this crisis.

To help providers communicate with their patients, we quickly launched a telemedicine solution that allows patients to continue to receive care without having to leave their home. With relaxed regulations around telehealth during this time, visits are covered by payers making it an alternative to visiting the clinic. Since the launch of the telemedicine solution, practices in The Network have had more than 6,000 visits across nearly 1,200 providers.

Breaking down federal and state relief bills for community oncology practices

Our government relations and public policy team is helping practices break down and understand federal and state level COVID-19 legislation such as the Coronavirus Preparedness and Response Supplemental Appropriations Act, Families First Coronavirus Response Act, and Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Economic Security (CARES) Act. Through webinars and summary documents, The Network practices learn about the impact of these bills on their practices and patients quickly. The latest information on The Network’s advocacy efforts, federal support for physician practices, executive orders, and legislation in response to COVID-19 is available on Legislink.com.

During this time, it’s paramount that practices have access to tools and resources necessary to deliver care to cancer patients. Providing those resources and support is our top priority now in a time of crisis and into the future.