Here are seven news updates for ambulatory surgery center leaders to know for May 4, 2015.
South Carolina's CON program could end in 2018
The South Carolina House of Representatives voted to end the state's certificate of need program, according to a report by The Post and Courier. Representative Jim Merrill (R-Charleston), along with several others, argued that the free market, rather than the CON program, should regulate new health services.
McKay-Dee Hospital to break ground on orthopedics, surgery center
The center will house six operating rooms, a physician clinic, physical therapy services, imaging center, pharmacy and bistro. The project will cost $27 million. The Mary Elizabeth Dee Shaw Foundation contributed $2 million in funding.
4 new board members for AAAHC
The new board officers are:
• Frank J. Chapman, MBA — Chair of the board of directors
• Meena Desai, MD — Vice chair
• Kenneth M. Sadler, DDS — Treasurer
• Arnald Valedon, MD — Board secretary
Two NY physicians get a step closer to new ASC approval
A family practice physician, Nisha Sharma, MD, and ophthalmologist, Vishal Sharma, MD, are working on a new ambulatory surgery center in Hamburg, N.Y., according to a Buffalo Business First report. The project was filed under Frontier Ambulatory Services Development Company to create the Frontier Center for Ambulatory Surgery. The ASC would be a multispecialty center and Drs. Sharma and Sharma would be landlord and shareholders of the limited liability company that owns the building. Read the full report on Becker's ASC Review.
Wisconsin outpatient surgery, medical building wins approval
Aurora Health Care in Sheboygan, Wis., launched plans to build an outpatient surgery center and medical office building in February near a local athletic field. The medical office building and outpatient surgery center is expected to cost $86.4 million.
US clinical registries are like the Wild West
Researchers at Johns Hopkins Medicine in Baltimore found United States clinical registries that collect patient outcome data are substandard and don't have the features patients, physicians and policymakers need. Read the full report on Becker's ASC Review.
UnitedHealthcare covers virtual care physician visits
UnitedHealthcare partnered with three platforms offering virtual physician visits for their plan participants to cover in-network members. Doctor On Demand, a healthcare application providing video visits between patients and physicians; Now Clinic, Optum's telemedicine service emphasizing a consumer-centered model; and American Well, one of the country's largest telehealth services, will all be included as plan participants.