How Oncology Groups Thrive in Value-Based Care in 2025

Oncology practices nationwide have embraced strategies to navigate value-based care (VBC), improve care coordination, and harness data for better decision-making. In the last year, a few key lessons have emerged—highlighting the importance of aligning with practice workflows, staying ahead of health policy shifts, and leveraging real-world data to drive meaningful outcomes.

Understanding Unique Oncology Practice Workflows

One of the most critical lessons takeaways from working with oncology practices is that successful solutions must integrate with their unique workflows, technology, and infrastructure. Unlike primary care or other specialty fields, oncology involves complex care coordination, multidrug regimens, infusion schedules, and extensive patient monitoring. 

A common challenge is the assumption that technology or analytics platforms can seamlessly integrate into existing clinical workflows. However, no two oncology practices operate in exactly the same way. Differences in electronic health record (EHR) configurations, staffing structures, and practice cultures impact how care is delivered. The key to success lies in deep engagement with frontline providers, administrators, and care teams to ensure that new solutions enhance—rather than disrupt—clinical efficiency.

Thyme Care will continue to prioritize adaptability in supporting oncology practices as they implement new programs or technologies. Modular solutions that complement existing workflows will be essential for improving care coordination, patient engagement, and cost management.

Oncology Health Policy: Navigating the Shifting Regulatory Landscape

Health policy and regulations continue to shape the oncology value-based care (VBC) landscape. Federal initiatives like the Enhancing Oncology Model (EOM) have placed greater emphasis on cost control and quality metrics, offering financial incentives for practices that manage utilization, adhere to evidence-based guidelines, and improve patient outcomes. The new administration has indicated a different approach with respect to prior CMS initiatives around health equity, and others - such as telemedicine regulatory flexibilities - remain an open question. Further, state policies on numerous issues can vary greatly and often display more change and momentum than those at the federal level.

For practices, adapting to such change requires a nimbleness of operational and analytical infrastructure. The key takeaway is that health policy cannot be an afterthought—it must be integrated into a practice’s long-term strategy. Oncology leaders will continue to monitor regulatory changes, engage with payer and policymaker stakeholders, and build internal capabilities to capitalize on emerging reimbursement opportunities.

The key takeaway: health policy must not be an afterthought—it is a foundational component of a sustainable business model in oncology value-based care. 

Oncology Data: The True Currency of Value-Based Care

A profound realization in oncology value-based care is that healthcare data—despite its imperfections—is the true currency of success. Practices generate vast amounts of data, from claims and billing records to structured EHR elements and pharmacy metadata. However, data fragmentation, lag, and quality issues remain persistent barriers.

Accessing and synthesizing this data is critical for securing VBC contracts, enabling appropriate opportunity sizing, fair performance measurement, and risk stratification. While real-world data may never be perfect, it does not need to be. Simplified, clinically validated approaches to risk stratification—such as combining diagnosis history, past acute care utilization, and structured clinical intake—can yield actionable insights that drive both patient care improvements and financial sustainability. For example, traditional electronic health records do not offer population-level insights, such as proportion of a panel that has advanced or metastatic disease, or proportion with both Medicaid and Medicare. Being able to leverage analytics tools that analyze care utilization and drug spend among such critical patient segments would allow practices to fine-tune or tailor outreach approaches.

The future of oncology data lies in better integration and usability. Practices would do well focusing on harmonizing interrelated data, ensuring robust quality checks, and using technology to bridge gaps in missing or incomplete information. Sharing insights in an accessible format will help practices transform raw data into meaningful, strategic action.

Charting the Course for Years Ahead: A Vision for Sustainable Oncology Value-Based Care

The oncology value-based care landscape is still evolving, but the momentum is strong. The lessons learned over the past year have reinforced the importance of adaptability, strategic policy navigation, and data-driven insights.

Thyme Care is committed to helping oncology practices navigate these complexities by offering:

Technology plays a critical role in delivering efficient, scalable cancer care. Thyme Care’s oncology-specific navigation platform streamlines care delivery and ensures that each member receives the right care at the right time:

• Hands-on support: Our dedicated network operations teams ensure seamless implementation of workflow adaptations.
• Tailored technology solutions: We provide modular tools that integrate with existing workflows to enhance efficiency and coordination.
• Deep expertise in policy and reimbursement: We actively monitor regulatory shifts and advocate for oncology-specific payment models.
• Data-driven insights: Our analytics bridge data gaps, refine risk stratification, and empower decision-making with real-world evidence.
• Innovative programs: We enable practices to uncover new revenue streams without taking on risk.

As 2025 approaches, we are expanding our partners with health plans and risk-bearing entities, advocating for oncology-specific payment models, and continuing to refine our analytics to drive meaningful improvements in care delivery. 

To learn more about how we can support your practice in the evolving VBC landscape, reach out to our team today.

To learn more about how we can support your practice in the evolving VBC landscape, reach out to our team today.

¹ Availability is dependent on geography and contracts.