Texas is home to one of the largest ASC markets in the country, with no certificate-of-need law and a fast-growing population driving sustained development.
Here are five updates from the last year shaping the Texas ASC landscape.
1. Austin pain practice pays $13.6M to resolve False Claims Act allegations
Austin, Texas-based Advanced Pain Care and its founder Mark Malone, MD, agreed to pay $13.6 million to resolve allegations tied to improper billing and referral arrangements. The settlement reflects the continued DOJ focus on physician-owned outpatient practices in Texas and adds to a pattern of False Claims Act enforcement in the state’s outpatient surgery and pain management space.
2. Methodist Richardson Medical Center opens new ASC
Methodist Richardson, Texas Medical Center opened a new ASC in early 2026, as part of a broader wave of new facility development across the South. The opening reflects the accelerating push by health systems in the Dallas-Fort Worth market to expand ambulatory surgery capacity as procedures continue migrating from inpatient settings.
3. Austin Regional Clinic opens new location in Round Rock
Austin Regional Clinic opened a new location in Round Rock, Texas in early 2026. ARC Greenlaw Specialty includes 17 exam rooms, three procedure rooms, an onsite lab, and radiology services. The opening reflects Austin’s continued population growth and the demand it is generating for expanded ambulatory and specialty care infrastructure in suburban markets.
4. Solara Surgical Partners pivots to de novo development as acquisition inventory thins
Southlake, Texas-based ASC developer Solara Surgical Partners sees a hard pivot coming toward de novo development, health system joint ventures and physician-led projects in underserved markets as the inventory of mature independently owned ASCs available for acquisition thins out, Chief Development Officer Steve Hockert told Becker’s. With United Surgical Partners International, SCA Health and Surgery Partners all acquiring aggressively, Mr. Hockert said the development side of the business is “becoming more relevant, not less” as the consolidation wave matures.
5. DFW consolidation wave accelerates as physician groups feel the squeeze
“In the last one to two years in the Dallas-Fort Worth area there have been several physician transactions with both primary care and specialty groups,” Gregory Brennan, MD, a gastroenterologist based in Mansfield, Texas, told Becker’s.
The comment captures a broader trend playing out across Texas’s largest metropolitan area. As private equity and health systems expand their footprints, independent physician groups and smaller ASCs face mounting pressure to sell, partner or find new operating models. Texas had four new ASC openings reported by Becker’s in 2025, tied for among the most active development states in the South after North Carolina and California.
At the Becker’s 32nd Annual Meeting: The Business and Operations of ASCs, taking place October 29-31 in Chicago, ASC leaders, surgeons and healthcare executives will explore strategies to drive growth, enhance operational performance, navigate reimbursement challenges and prepare for the future of ambulatory surgery. Apply for complimentary registration now.
