Here are four legislative updates from the past month:
1. CMS released its 2020 outpatient and ASC prospective payment system proposed rule, ushering in several changes for ASCs and hospital outpatient departments. Notably, the agency proposed adding total knee arthroplasty to the ASC-payable list. If CMS' 2020 proposed payment rule for ASCs and hospital outpatient departments is finalized as written, ASCs could see an average 2.7 percent payment increase over all covered procedures, according to ASCA CEO Bill Prentice.
2. The Florida Society of Ambulatory Surgical Centers is celebrating a recent lobbying victory. A Florida law permitting ASCs to keep patients for up to 24 hours was passed June 25, eliminating a requirement that ASC patients must be admitted and discharged the same day.
3. The North Carolina legislature may soon reform its certificate of need policies. The Senate is considering House Bill 126, which would allow single-specialty centers to become multispecialty centers without CON review.
4. In July, Becker's ASC Review asked Bill Frist, MD, a former Republican senator for Tennessee, to share his thoughts on how policymakers view ASCs. Click here to read the feature.