ASCs in 2020 saw 1.5 million average claims per month compared to 2.2 million claims per month in 2021. According to Definitive Healthcare, these stats point to a permanent shift of care to ASCs, rather than being solely driven by the COVID-19 pandemic when elective procedures were canceled in the hospital setting.
The volume of outpatient surgical procedures performed in a hospital setting procedure was declining pre-pandemic, according to Definitive Healthcare claims data. Between 2019 and 2020, the number of outpatient surgical procedures performed in a hospital setting decreased by more than 15 percent.
