Work is progressing on Opelika-based East Alabama Medical Center's ASC and freestanding emergency center in advance of its December opening.

Yakima, Wash.-based Astria Health received federal approval to sell the vacant Astria Regional Medical Center and neighboring medical office building to an investment group for $20 million, the Yakima Herald reports.

Brown Mills, N.J.-based Deborah Heart and Lung Center celebrated completing its 550th transcatheter aortic valve replacement, Insider NJ reported Oct. 21.

Five employees at Albuquerque, N.M.-based UNM Health's outpatient surgery center recently tested positive for COVID-19, local news affiliate KRQE reported Oct. 21.

At the beginning of October, The Center for Innovative GYN Care opened the CIGC Wellness Center in Rockville, Md. Becker's ASC Review spoke to the Wellness Center's founder, Natalya Danilyants, MD — who is also co-founder of Rockville's The Center for Innovative GYN Care — about her vision for the new facility, challenges specific to her specialty and more.

Madison (Ala.) Surgery Center is seeking approval to convert administrative space into clinical space, according to documents from Alabama's State Health Planning & Development Agency.

The shift of more complex orthopedic, spine and cardiology procedures to the ASC has accelerated over the past few months. That transition will likely continue in the coming years with CMS’ proposal to remove 266 orthopedic procedures, including 67 spine procedures, from the inpatient only list in 2021.

Skokie, Ill.-based Accreditation Association for Ambulatory Health Care received four-year accreditation from the International Society for Quality in Health Care's External Evaluation Association International Accreditation Program, according to an Oct. 21 press release. 

CMS issued a proposal which declined to cover the first FDA-approved blood-based colorectal cancer screening test, but created a guideline for still-in-development tests to earn approval, according to an Oct. 16 memo.

Healthgrades released its Healthgrades Specialty Excellence Awards and Best Hospitals for Specialty Care report Oct. 20, recognizing several facilities for top-line care.

Houston Metro Ortho and Spine Surgery Center asked the appeals court for the 14th District of Texas to vacate an $8 million award Harris County District Court awarded Richard Francis, MD, because of the language in Dr. Francis' employment contract, Law360 reports.

Nonprofit health system CoxHealth plans to absorb Crighton Olive Dunn Surgical Group, according to an Oct. 16 announcement.

Nashville, Tenn.-based Envision Healthcare reached a multiyear, statewide agreement with Cigna in Florida, according to an Oct. 21 announcement.

Pacira BioSciences opened the Pacira Innovation and Training Center of Tampa (Fla.) to train physicians on non-opioid pain management options, the company announced Oct. 21.

In Wisconsin, Epic and Exact Sciences are decreasing COVID-19 test turnaround time by inputting results directly into Epic's MyChart program, Channel3000 reports.

Tucson-based University of Arizona researchers have identified a biomarker that appears in patients before they develop stomach cancer, the university announced Oct. 20.

Addison, Texas-based United Surgical Partners International generated net operating revenues of $565 million in the third quarter ended Sept. 30, a year-over-year increase of 8.2 percent.

  Here are five updates from gastroenterology companies and practices from the past week:

Today's healthcare environment is rife with opportunities for ASCs and hospitals — but these opportunities go hand-in-hand with a number of challenges and implications for the industry's future.

Brands today are grappling with unprecedented challenges of customer acquisition and loyalty due to one common issue: the centralization of choices.