Cancer-care shakeup: Dana-Farber exits MGB’s Medicare Advantage network

Mass General Brigham Health Plan will drop Dana-Farber Cancer Institute from its Medicare Advantage network starting Oct. 1, a move tied to financial pressures amid a broader split between Dana-Farber and MGB. About 20,500 plan members are affected, though only a fraction currently receive Dana-Farber care; roughly 250 members are actively treated there and up to 1,000 had appointments this year. Dana-Farber says it’s the first time a health insurer has removed it from a network and notes patients can stay in-network for up to 90 days or through the end of ongoing treatment, while offering financial counseling and alternative plan options. Dana-Farber is pursuing a new cancer-hospital partnership with Beth Israel Lahey Health, and MGB is investing in its own cancer institute, highlighting the broader “cancer wars” and the use of narrow networks to control costs.