Becker's has covered 845 ASCs opening since 2017, but what about closures?
Since 2018, we have reported on 71 ASC and physician practice closures across several states, though most were in California and Wisconsin.
Here are all the states where more than one closure occurred:
|
State |
No. of Closures |
|---|---|
|
California |
24 |
|
Wisconsin |
10 |
|
Vermont |
4 |
|
Florida |
3 |
|
Ohio |
3 |
|
Texas |
3 |
|
Washington |
3 |
Following are 71 ASC and physician practice closures that Becker's covered across 20 reports. Some were temporary closures.
More recent items are listed first.
1. Yakima (Wash.) Valley Memorial permanently closed three outpatient clinics, including its Ambulatory Endoscopy Clinic, to consolidate services and help address staff shortages.
2. Red Bud (Ill.) Regional Hospital closed the Monroe County Surgical Center in Waterloo, Ill., citing low volume and the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic. The ASC opened in 2011 as a physician-owned facility. In 2015, a majority stake was acquired by Red Bud Regional Hospital for $2.2 million.
3. Cleveland Clinic Union Hospital in Dover, Ohio, closed its ASC, the Tuscarawas Ambulatory Surgery Center.
4. TLC Laser Eye Center in West Fargo, N.D., temporarily closed after several employees quit in late May 2021. The center postponed care for 30 days to hire and train more staff.
5. Heights Hospital in Houston, which mostly provided outpatient and specialty care, closed in January 2021 after its management company failed to pay rent. The physicians said they weren't notified of the closure and treated patients in the parking lot.
6. Gilford, N.H.-based Advanced Orthopaedic Specialists announced plans to close in March 2021 after Laconia, N.H.-based Lakes Region General Hospital decided not to renew its service agreement. The practice joined Frisbie Memorial Hospital in Rochester, N.H., in June.
7. Northern California Medical Associates shut its doors May 1, 2021, laying off 26 physicians and 151 employees. The group blamed natural disasters and financial strain for the closure.
8. Lags Medical Centers, a pain management clinic chain, closed 23 California locations in May 2021 without warning. Patients were provided one month's supply of pain medications and instructed to find care elsewhere. Lags also has locations in Nevada, Florida and Delaware.
9. Four independent physician practices in Shelburne, Vt., closed in May 2021. Two of the primary care physicians retired, and two others became salaried employees of larger organizations. Jessa Barnard, executive director of the Vermont Medical Society, said the closures illustrate the challenges physicians face in running independent practices.
10. Family Practice of the Kennebunks in Kennebunk, Maine, closed June 30, 2021. The practice was unable to find a buyer to own and manage operations after its two physicians decided to retire earlier in the year.
11. Advanced Pain Management, a Wisconsin-based chain of pain management practices and surgery centers, shut down several locations in 2020, the company announced in January 2021. The company closed six locations in March 2020 and four more from Sept. 22 to Oct. 31, 2020.
12. Las Cruces (N.M.) Orthopaedic Associates permanently shut down in May 2020, citing "unforeseen circumstances." The practice's four orthopedic surgeons joined other local groups.
13. Pinnacle Regional Hospital in Overland Park, Kan., filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in February 2020 and then closed permanently in April 2020. The private hospital and its clinics focused on spinal fusions and included 100 physicians.
14. Greene Memorial Hospital in Xenia, Ohio, closed its surgery center in March 2020.
15. Holston Medical Group shut down 10 offices and multiple urgent care locations in early 2020, including its last location in North Carolina, and laid off 160 employees due to the pandemic.
16. The Villages (Fla.) Regional Hospital closed an ASC on March 1, 2019, because it didn't attract enough specialists to operate as normal. The ASC, which opened in 2015, included ophthalmology, podiatry, dermatology, pain management and plastic surgery.
17. On March 1, 2019, Laser Spine Institute closed four ASCs in Tampa, Fla., Cincinnati, Scottsdale, Ariz., and St. Louis, after the company failed to secure enough financing to continue operations. The company, which launched its first center in 2005, displaced around 1,000 employees with the closures.
During the six months before the company shut down, Laser Spine Institute closed three other surgical centers in an attempt to reduce its operating costs, but was unable to develop a sustainable cost structure.
18. Houston-based U.S. Pain & Spine Hospital closed abruptly in May 2018, and 63 employees were laid off. After the organization's CEO and CFO departed the hospital, accounting errors and omissions in hospital operations were found that impacted the bottom line.
19. Rockdale, Texas-based Little River Healthcare closed its facilities in December 2018, including Temple (Texas) Surgery Center, due to financial challenges.
20. On Oct. 19, 2018, Naples (Fla.) Day Surgery closed. Owners of the joint venture surgery center, owned by local physicians and NCH Healthcare System, cited low patient volume and competition from other ASCs in the closure. Opened in 1986, the ASC had five surgical suites and 64 employees.