ASC News

As hospitals continue to cut service lines amid thinning margins and high inflation, ASCs could have an opportunity to pick up patient volume. 

The average annual salary for physician assistants increased by 4.1% between 2023 and 2024, while inflation is currently down by 19.5%.

OptumRx, Optum's pharmacy benefit management company, has agreed to pay $20 million to settle allegations it improperly filled certain opioid prescriptions, violating the Controlled Substances Act.

A medical office building in Red Bank, N.J., was evacuated on the afternoon of June 27 after a car crashed into it, according to a June 27 report from Red Bank Green.

Noncompete clauses have been a divisive issue in healthcare, particularly since the Federal Trade Commission voted to ban the practice earlier this year. 

Grappling with rising practice costs, inflation and staffing shortages has created an increasingly competitive market for health systems, practices and ASCs. Dealing with these financial headwinds has forced some care sites to lay off staff.

A former emergency department physician at Port Angeles, Wash.-based Olympic Medical Center was sentenced to 364 days in jail for the sexual assault of six patients, Radio Pacific reported June 25. 

The Mount Kisco (N.Y.) Surgery Center was hit with a data breach affecting current and former employees and patients. 

Greenville, N.C.-based Carolina East Family Medicine's physician office has abruptly closed, WITN reported June 25

As ASCs become increasingly appealing to market players, some healthcare leaders who are not as familiar with ASC practices may be looking to open outpatient centers.