Message from the CEO
BY BILL PRENTICE | FEBRUARY 2019
As the country grapples with a tragic opioid epidemic, the government and ASCA are working to support a comprehensive solution to address the abuse and misuse of pain-killers. According to the US Department of Health & Human Services (HHS), opioid overdoses accounted for more than 42,000 deaths in 2016, more than any previous year on record.
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BY BILL PRENTICE | NOVEMBER-DECEMBER 2018
Late in September, two Capitol Hill hearings provided opportunities for ASC supporters to talk with members of Congress about the value that ASCs provide to patients and the need for improved quality and price transparency in health care.
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BY BILL PRENTICE | SEPTEMBER 2018
This year is shaping up to be a momentous one for the ASC community. One important reason for that is the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services’ (CMS) proposed 2019 ASC payment rule issued in July. That proposal suggests sweeping changes to Medicare’s ASC policies.
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BY BILL PRENTICE | JUNE-JULY 2018
Now that the annual meeting is behind us—and I hope all of you who were able to join us returned home with useful takeaways in the form of new ideas, information and connections—I want to share two new programs with you.
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BY BILL PRENTICE | APRIL 2018
ASC professionals with specialized knowledge and skills in infection prevention can now demonstrate their expertise through an infection prevention certification program introduced this year by the Board of Ambulatory Surgery Certification (BASC). The new Certified Ambulatory Infection Preventionist (CAIP) program also provides an opportunity for infection preventionists (IP) working in the ASC setting to distinguish themselves from IPs who work in other settings and to demonstrate their commitment to best practices in infection prevention and control.
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BY BILL PRENTICE | FEBRUARY 2018
As all of us here at ASCA are gearing up for ASCA 2018, April 11–14, in Boston, I want to encourage anyone who hasn’t already registered for this meeting to sign up now.
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BY BILL PRENTICE | NOVEMBER-DECEMBER 2017
In early September, ASCA submitted formal comments to the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) on Medicare’s proposed 2018 ASC payment rule. Also known as the 2018 Hospital Outpatient Prospective Payment System (OPPS) and Ambulatory Surgical Center (ASC) Payment System proposed rule, it recommends ASC reimbursement rates for the coming year and other payment policies, including Medicare quality reporting requirements.
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BY BILL PRENTICE | SEPTEMBER 2017
The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) released its 2018 proposed payment rule for ASCs and hospital outpatient departments (HOPDs) in July. While the proposal did not address all of ASCA’s concerns regarding Medicare reimbursement for ASC services, it did show a greater recognition of the evolution in care being provided in ASCs.
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BY BILL PRENTICE | JUNE-JULY 2017
This June-July issue of ASC Focus brings you articles on two key operational areas in your ASC: patient safety and marketing. Read a column on patient safety on page 8; learn about the most challenging accreditation guidelines related to medication management on page 10; find out how best to work with compounding pharmacies on page 14; consider ways to win over patients through engagement on page 16; and read about a screening colonoscopy program in a Missouri ASC that is seeing early success.
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BY BILL PRENTICE | APRIL 2017
With a new administration in the White House, a new secretary at the US Department of Health and Human Services and health care front and center in Congress, one thing is certain: change is on the horizon.
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BY BILL PRENTICE | FEBRUARY 2017
This issue of ASC Focus magazine looks at ASC advocacy and gives you insights into the agenda that ASCA will press with legislators, regulators and other policymakers this year. This issue also provides you with background on the members of our Government Affairs team who dedicate their time to advocating on your ASC’s behalf. I encourage you to familiarize yourself with the members of this team and ASCA’s advocacy agenda, and then, to find ways that you can be more involved.
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BY BILL PRENTICE | NOVEMBER-DECEMBER 2016
Although January might be a more traditional time to begin forecasting hot topics and new developments that might affect ASCs in the coming year, a number of articles in this edition address emerging issues that will lead surgery centers in important new directions in 2017.
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BY BILL PRENTICE | SEPTEMBER 2016
If you read the email messages that ASCA sends its members each week and follow the news about ASCs, you likely already know that a study released in June shows that ASCs currently reduce private health insurance spending by $38 billion each year. That study also concludes that $5 billion of that savings goes directly to patients through lower deductibles and coinsurance payments.
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BY BILL PRENTICE | AUGUST 2016
In 2016, Medicare released its most comprehensive ASC quality data reports to date. These reports are built on data that ASCs have been submitting to Medicare since 2012. For the first time, the reports provide the public with information on a set of ASC quality measures that, in addition to some key process measures, like the use of a safe surgery checklist, provide data on actual outcomes measures like patient burns, wrongsite surgeries and patient falls.
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BY BILL PRENTICE | JUNE-JULY 2016
With nearly half of 2016 behind us, now is a good time to review some of the innovative projects and outreach efforts that ASCA has been involved with this year.
New HIPAA Workbook for ASCs. To help ASCs comply with all of the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 (HIPAA) requirements, ASCA provided all of its facility and corporate members with a free HIPAA compliance workbook this spring. This workbook, developed specifically for ASCs, includes an in-depth review of the HIPAA requirements and a comprehensive set of customizable forms and worksheets that you can use to design, evaluate and strengthen your ASC’s compliance program.
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BY BILL PRENTICE | MAY 2016
ASCA has developed a video, “What Is an ASC?,” that explains ASCs in clear and concise terms. We have posted the video on ASCA’s Advancing Surgical Care Campaign web site and on ASCA’s YouTube channel. I encourage you to share the video with your community by directing them to that site or by adding the video to your own web site.
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