Payment

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...]

UnitedHealth Group (NYSE: UNH) is reportedly demanding that health care providers repay loans they received from the insurer in the wake of a massive cyberattack last year on subsidiary Change Healthcare. In February of last year, a ransomware attack brought down a swath of Change Healthcare’s payment and processing systems. This shutdown lasted for months, causing far-reaching disruptions that impacted providers across the country.  Physicians, ambulatory surgery centers (ASCs) and … [Read more...]

In a sweeping move that could reshape health care administration across the country, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) has unveiled a major restructuring plan.  Under the plan, HHS will reduce its workforce from 82,000 to 62,000 employees and consolidate 28 divisions into 15, with the aim of streamlining administrative functions and centralizing processes such as human resources, information technology, procurement, external affairs and policy, according to a Trump … [Read more...]

Ambulatory surgery center (ASC) industry insiders are mixed when it comes to the 2025 reimbursement landscape. ASCs typically receive reimbursement from a mix of public and private payers. Payer sources include fee-for-service Medicare and Medicare Advantage (MA), for instance, but also commercial insurance, Medicaid and self-pay. This payer landscape has been steadily evolving in recent years, both in terms of volume and rate dynamics. The U.S. Center for Medicare & Medicaid … [Read more...]

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...]

Having nurse administrators at the helm of an ambulatory surgery center (ASC) can help the facility better weather staffing shortages. It can also help centers come up with more “creative” solutions, some industry leaders believe.  “There’s a place for folks that are non-clinicians in ASCs, but I just don’t think it should be as the administrator,” Janet Carlson, executive director of ambulatory surgery centers for Commonwealth Pain & Spine, told Ambulatory Surgery Center … [Read more...]

For years, ambulatory surgery centers (ASCs) have operated at a reimbursement disadvantage compared to hospital outpatient departments (HOPDs) and other – often costlier – health care settings. Yet a growing push for site-neutral payments could soon level the playing field, potentially reshaping the financial landscape for ASCs, hospitals and payers alike. And Brentwood, Tennessee-based Surgery Partners (Nasdaq: SGRY) is embracing the movement wholeheartedly, according to CEO Eric … [Read more...]

Ambulatory surgery centers (ASCs) are confronting an evolving landscape of reimbursement pressures, heightened prior authorization hurdles and new pushes for price transparency.  “Authorization has been a huge issue throughout 2024,” Todd Currier, CEO and administrator of Bend Surgery Center, said during a recent Ambulatory Surgery Center News webinar. “Trying to get pre-ops done for surgical cases, it just, it’s grown our backlog to cases and delayed procedures. ... It delays care, which is … [Read more...]

Tenet Healthcare Corporation (NYSE: THC) closed out 2024 strong, partly propelled by growth in its large ambulatory surgery center (ASC) division, United Surgical Partners International (USPI). Moving forward, the company is focused on ASC expansion and high-acuity case growth, CEO Saum Sutaria said during the company’s Q4 earnings call. "We intend to invest approximately $250 million each year towards M&A in the ambulatory space,” Sutaria said. “And the pipeline of opportunities … [Read more...]

In the ongoing shift toward value-based care, ambulatory surgery centers (ASCs) may need to rethink their record-keeping. While hospitals embraced electronic health records (EHRs) years ago, often propelled by federal mandates, many ASCs continue to rely on paper documentation and manual processes.  But momentum to go digital is building.  With private equity activity, more health system affiliations, and a growing need for cost savings and efficiency, ASC operators are implementing … [Read more...]