ASCA

March is National Colorectal Cancer (CRC) Awareness Month, a good time to reflect on the incidence and life-threatening consequences of this disease. It is also a good time to consider the many lives that have been saved through early screenings and the use of colonoscopy, the gold standard for detection and prevention. 

With Donald Trump the declared winner of the U.S. presidential election in November, it is still too soon to say exactly what the next four years will mean for surgery centers. During his first term as president, Trump eliminated some regulatory burdens on surgery centers and added numerous additional procedures to the ASC Covered Procedures List (ASC CPL).

The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) issued its 2025 proposed payment rule for ASCs and hospital outpatient departments (HOPD) in July. It invited all interested parties to submit comments by September 9.

You don’t have to work in health care to be familiar with the Change Healthcare ransomware attack that occurred earlier this year. That hack caused billing disruptions across the country and inspired congress to convene hearings to begin exploring how the breach occurred and what steps to take to prevent comparable attacks in the future.

In the past year, Congress has been holding hearings and discussing various proposals purported to decrease the cost of health care; guarantee safe, high-quality care for patients and ensure patient access to care.

ASCA is ringing in the New Year with optimism that changes in the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services’ (CMS) final 2024 ASC and hospital outpatient department (HOPD) payment rule will lead to increased Medicare beneficiary access to surgery centers.