Monday, September 7, 2026

Mass General Brigham is dropping Dana-Farber Cancer Institute from its Medicare Advantage network. The change, confirmed by MGB this week, will take effect on November 1, 2026, affecting a significant cohort of cancer patients in the Boston area. Dana-Farber is a leading regional cancer center. This move will force enrolled patients to seek in-network cancer care at other MGB facilities or to switch health plans during the upcoming Annual Election Period. For practices managing these patients, confirm referral and prior authorization status for Dana-Farber services now. Advise affected patients to review their plan options before the October 2 start of Medicare Open Enrollment for 2027.

The Federal Trade Commission has extended the public comment period for its rulemaking on commercial surveillance and personalized pricing practices. The new deadline is September 25, 2026. The agency's Advanced Notice of Proposed Rulemaking explores whether to limit how firms use consumer data to set individualized prices, a practice that could intersect with insurance risk modeling and premium setting. While the rule is consumer-focused, any final restrictions on data use for pricing could influence payer underwriting practices and claims adjudication. The rulemaking docket is FTC-2026-0035.

The forced disenrollment rate from Medicare Advantage plans has spiked from a historical average of 1% to 10% in 2026, a shift that will force practices to re-credential providers and re-educate patients on fee-for-service Medicare. The spike reflects plan exits from counties and network narrowing. CMS requires plans to send non-renewal notices for 2027 by October 2, 2026. Practices should audit their patient panels now for Medicare Advantage enrollment and prepare for a wave of patient calls and coverage changes starting early October. This volume of churn will directly impact payer mix and create a surge in administrative work for billing and front-office staff.