Ambulatory surgery centers (ASCs) are facing mounting pressure to prove clinical excellence as payers pivot toward value‑based contracts and higher‑acuity cases migrate to the outpatient setting. Yet because ASCs are different from the hospital setting, they require new benchmarking standards. Nina Goins, executive director of the ASC Quality Collaboration, said her coalition’s new safety and quality assessment, national benchmarking data, and ASC‑specific performance measures can help. … [Read more...]
HCA Gains Outpatient Edge as ASC Strategy Sees Traction
Outpatient revenue outpaced inpatient gains at HCA Healthcare (NYSE: HCA) in the first quarter of 2025. Company leaders said ambulatory surgery centers (ASCs) are helping drive that trend as HCA ramps up capital investment in lower-cost settings. After a rough Q4 with the impact of hurricanes Milton and Helene, the Nashville, Tennessee-based health care giant’s revenue was $18.32 billion for Q1, slightly above the expected $18.26 billion. For context, HCA reported revenues of $17.34 … [Read more...]
Contract Disputes, Compliance Gaps and AI Denials Among Growing ASC Legal Risks
Contractual disputes, compliance pitfalls and insurance denials driven by artificial intelligence are among the many legal issues that should be on ambulatory surgery center (ASC) operators' radar in 2025. Generally, legal experts expect litigation involving ASCs to rise this year, attorneys at ArentFox Schiff wrote in a recent JD Supra post, pointing to expanding case volume tied to operational, regulatory and transactional friction points. As more high-acuity procedures shift from … [Read more...]
Debate Grows Over Impact of Site Neutrality on Outpatient Care
The site-neutrality movement, aimed at standardizing payments across outpatient health care settings, has rapidly emerged as an important discussion among ambulatory surgery center (ASC) operators. While potentially beneficial in driving procedures into lower-cost environments by eliminating hospital facility fees, industry leaders have mixed perspectives on its implementation. Michael McClain, managing partner at Left Coast Healthcare Advisors, told Ambulatory Surgery Center News his … [Read more...]
Majority of ASCs Now Administering OAS CAHPS Survey, ASCA Finds
A new survey from the Ambulatory Surgery Center Association (ASCA) found that a significant majority of ambulatory surgery centers are now actively administering the Outpatient and Ambulatory Surgery Consumer Assessment of Healthcare Providers and Systems (OAS CAHPS) Survey, following its mandate as part of the Medicare ASC Quality Reporting (ASCQR) Program. The March 2025 ASCA 60-Second Survey, which gathered responses from 261 facilities across 44 states, showed a marked shift since last … [Read more...]
AMSURG, Compass, Destin Surgery Center Leaders Discuss the Future of ASCs
Leaders across the ambulatory surgery center (ASC) industry agree on one point: ASCs have never been more essential to the nation’s health care ecosystem. “I think as we see more acute care cases move into our world, we’re all getting really comfortable with the joints, the spine [cases], and now we’re moving into two, three level spines as the codes and and things change,” Deb Yoder, vice president of facility development at Compass Surgical Partners, told Ambulatory Surgery Center News at … [Read more...]
‘Pit Crew’ Approach Slashes OR Turnover Time, Boosts ASC Efficiency
For ambulatory surgery centers (ASCs), success across a variety of areas can be linked back to operating room efficiency. OR efficiency is critical for ASCs because it directly impacts a facility's ability to maximize case volume and revenue within limited operating hours. Efficient OR booking ensures optimal utilization of surgical time, while fast, safe turnover between procedures minimizes downtime, improves patient flow and enhances surgeon satisfaction. Together, these efficiencies … [Read more...]
Ambulatory Surgery Centers Can Boost Safety, Prevent Catastrophe with At-Home Patient Monitoring
A new study from Intermountain Health has shown that discharging certain high-risk patients with a pulse oximeter can help prevent opioid-induced respiratory depression at home. The findings are particularly relevant for ambulatory surgery centers (ASCs), where patients often receive opioids after same-day procedures and then quickly return to their homes without the degree of clinical monitoring they’d receive in other settings. Home monitoring will likely become a part of an added safety … [Read more...]
From Budget Bleed to Burnout: The Top ASC Challenges Defining 2025
Rising operational costs and staffing constraints are two of the most pressing challenges for ambulatory surgery centers (ASCs) in 2025, new survey findings from Ambulatory Surgery Center News suggest. Other pain points include anesthesiology, reimbursement rates and market consolidation, according to the survey. To better understand current trends and challenges in the ASC space, ASC News conducted a survey of professionals across a range of roles in the industry at the beginning of 2025. … [Read more...]
‘Measure Twice, Cut Once’: Building an ASC that Meets Future Demands
A driving force behind current ambulatory surgery center (ASC) construction and renovation is the push to accommodate higher-acuity cases, particularly orthopedics and spine procedures, that traditionally took place in a hospital setting. Yet another driving force is steering in the other direction; lower-acuity cases are being moved into the outpatient setting to capitalize on more favorable reimbursement. To make it all happen under one roof, it takes careful planning, thoughtful design … [Read more...]