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Evolent and American Oncology Network unveil innovative model seeking to improve cancer care while eliminating prior authorization burden

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Evolent and AON logos

WASHINGTON, NOVEMBER 6, 2025 – Evolent Health, Inc. (NYSE: EVH), a company focused on achieving better health outcomes for people with complex conditions, and American Oncology Network (AON), one of the nation’s fastest-growing community oncology networks, today announced a new model enabling high-quality, more affordable, and connected cancer care — all without relying on prior authorization.

The national partnership seeks to improve clinical decision-making by introducing quality-focused interventions, driving clinical insights through an innovative data and analytics platform, and rewarding providers for high-quality care. As providers demonstrate adherence to quality, they will be “gold-carded” — no longer required to seek authorization from payers for most tests and treatments. Meanwhile, Evolent intends to use its care navigation program to complement AON’s existing capabilities to help patients manage daily life with cancer and stay better connected to their oncology team. AON and Evolent expect to roll out this model in select markets in the year ahead.

“Community oncology practices are a linchpin of our cancer care system, but they face immense pressures, from administrative burdens and financial stresses to care coordination needs,” said AON Chief Medical Officer Dr. Stephen “Fred” Divers. “With its provider-centric approach and uncompromising focus on doing what is best for patients, Evolent is an ideal partner. Evolent’s quality efforts go beyond common strategies that are largely tapped out — like shifting to biosimilars — to tackle some of the major drivers of quality and costs in cancer care.”

Key components of the program include:

  • Quality initiatives. Evolent and AON will help providers act on high-impact but underused opportunities to improve quality and affordability across the full continuum of care beyond traditional utilization management. The partnership seeks to drive sustained quality improvement through a systematic approach that combines provider education, scorecards, automated reminders delivered directly in the electronic medical record, and incentives.
  • AI-driven clinical insights. The model is powered in part by MiBA (Meaningful Insights Biotech Analytics), an innovative data and analytics platform co-developed in collaboration with AON, that supports providers with evidence-based insights and personalized cancer treatment plans. Harnessing real-time data in the electronic health record, the platform uses analytics and algorithms to uncover patterns, trends and correlations that can improve patient care and drive innovation.
  • Payment innovation. AON and Evolent are developing an aligned payment model seeking to reward oncology practices for delivering high-quality care. Moving beyond traditional fee-for-service models, the model aims to re-wire incentives to encourage providers to select the clinically optimal drug regimen for each patient.
  • Eliminating prior authorization. Providers who adhere to high-quality treatment pathways will no longer need prior authorization for most tests and treatments. This should accelerate the time to treatment and reduce the administrative burden for practices and patients.
  • Care navigation. AON patients will have access to Evolent’s comprehensive cancer care navigation program, which combines personalized navigation and a cancer care management platform, Careology, to help patients move through their journey with greater confidence and support. AON and Evolent believe this program will bolster AON’s existing care management capabilities and support the goal of end-to-end condition management.

“Patients, providers and health plans want the same thing out of the cancer journey — longer survival and a higher quality of life without unnecessary costs or hassles,” said Evolent President Dan McCarthy. “Yet, traditional models create friction between these groups as well as gaps, resulting in misaligned care, provider burnout and administrative waste. We’re thrilled to collaborate with American Oncology Network, as another leader in high-value cancer care, to create an ecosystem in which everyone wins when patients receive the best possible care.”

About Evolent
Evolent (NYSE: EVH) specializes in better health outcomes for people with complex conditions through proven solutions that make health care simpler and more affordable. Evolent serves a national base of leading payers and providers and is consistently recognized as a top place to work in health care nationally. Learn more about how Evolent is changing the way health care is delivered by visiting evolent.com.

About American Oncology Network
American Oncology Network (AON) is an alliance of physicians and seasoned healthcare leaders partnering to ensure the long-term success and viability of community oncology and other specialties. Founded in 2018, AON’s rapidly expanding network represents more than 300 providers practicing across 20 states. AON pioneers innovative healthcare solutions through its physician-led model, fostering value-based care that improves patient outcomes while reducing costs and expanding access to quality care. AON equips its network physicians with the tools they need to thrive independently while providing comprehensive support, integrated revenue-diversifying ancillary services, and practice management expertise, enabling physicians to focus on what matters most – providing the highest standard of care for every patient. AON is committed to promoting health equity by addressing disparities in cancer care and ensuring that all patients have access to the care they need to achieve optimal health outcomes. With a focus on innovation and collaboration, AON is shaping the future of community oncology. For more information, please visit AONcology.com or follow us on LinkedIn, Facebook, X (formerly Twitter) and YouTube.

Media inquiries

Evolent

Jamie Manfuso

media@evolent.com

American Oncology Network

Karen Riley Sawyer

Karen.Sawyer@AONcology.com

Racial Disparities in Cancer Care and Research: The Causes and Possible Solutions

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February was Black History Month, making this an important time to note the racial disparities that exist in cancer care and research. Black people have higher death rates than members of all other ethnic groups for most types of cancer — specifically multiple myeloma and prostate cancer — and black women are more likely to die from breast cancer than white women despite a similar rate of diagnosis.

While there has been progress toward erasing these inequities in treatment and care, a great deal more work remains to be done. To that end, it is important to stay informed of these disparities so we can learn how to eliminate them forever.

The Causes of Racial Disparities

There are many reasons why racial disparities exist in cancer care, one of which is based in socioeconomics. The reality is that a wide wealth gap remains between black and white households, even within the same income class, which can put higher quality medical care out of financial reach. This is especially true for those seeking treatment for costly cancer care.

Another reason is an inherent distrust African Americans have traditionally had with the healthcare industry. While this distrust dates back to the highly unethical Tuskegee syphilis study in 1932, more recent research has provided additional reasons why it persists: an implicit bias in healthcare that black people often receive lower quality care than their white counterparts. According to a survey conducted by Genentech and published by WebMD in partnership with the All of Us Research Program, 1 in 3 medically disenfranchised black and Hispanic people said they didn’t participate in clinical trials or receive vaccinations because of their lack of trust in the healthcare industry.

The restoration of trust in the healthcare industry would be a huge step forward in greatly reducing or eliminating racial disparities.

The Need for Diversity in Research

While social and economic barriers do play a role in higher rates of cancer in the U.S., it is also true that African Americans are more susceptible to the disease than other ethnic groups. This can be attributed to genetics, limited access to quality care and, most importantly, substandard care stemming from a lack of diversity in clinical research and drug trials.

Black people make up about 13% of the U.S. population, yet we seldom see that portion of the population represented in research. Notably, African Americans make up just 1-2% of the participants in clinical trials. This lack of diversity makes it impossible to see what effect certain drugs may have on people of African-American descent, especially when trying to treat multiple myeloma, of which African Americans account for approximately 30% of the patients.

One way to combat this is to assign a diversity officer to all research studies and clinical trials. Currently, there are data safety and monitoring boards for studies to ensure the patients and participants are being properly cared for and protected. The diversity officer can play a similar role by ensuring study populations don’t heavily skew in the direction of one race or another. This helps ensure that all patients are represented equally, making available the data that lets researchers know the effect a certain drug or treatment has on all members of the population.

Steps in the Right Direction

Disparities and gaps in care do exist, but for the first time, we are seeing progress toward rectifying this problem. While the Food and Drug Administration cannot mandate population-based studies, it is beginning to encourage drug manufacturers and the healthcare industry to focus research on generating data applicable to African Americans. The industry seems to be listening, too, as evidenced by the creation of think tanks and advisory boards to learn how to be more inclusive.

The American Society of Clinical Oncology, which is the world’s largest cancer society that features representation from 150 different countries, recently announced the addition of a diversity and inclusion officer to its administrative structure. This role will address some of these racial disparities and work toward solutions to eliminate them.

At American Oncology Network (AON), we are in a unique position because of our diverse patient population and geographic footprint. This combination allows all patients, but especially African Americans, to participate in trials right in their own community – trials that are being conducted by physicians and doctors they know and trust.

This sort of inclusion is a significant step toward making sure patients from all walks of life are receiving the care they deserve.