In OCM, episodes were initiated on the date of service for an initial Part B chemotherapy drug claim with a corresponding cancer diagnosis on the claim, or on the fill date for an initial Part D chemotherapy drug claim with a corresponding Part B claim for cancer on the date of, or in the 59 days preceding, the drug claim. Episodes continued for six months after the triggering chemotherapy event, as long as the beneficiary met eligibility requirements for all six months; the ending date of the episode is the variable EPSD_END_DT. Beneficiaries who continued to receive chemotherapy after completing the six-month episode initiated a new episode.
Formatted as MMDDYY10 in SAS
In OCM, episodes were initiated on the date of service for an initial Part B chemotherapy drug claim with a corresponding cancer diagnosis on the claim, or on the fill date for an initial Part D chemotherapy drug claim with a corresponding Part B claim for cancer on the date of, or in the 59 days preceding, the drug claim. Episodes continued for six months after the triggering chemotherapy event, as long as the beneficiary met eligibility requirements for all six months; the ending date of the episode is the variable EPSD_END_DT. Beneficiaries who continued to receive chemotherapy after completing the six-month episode initiated a new episode.