Five ASC leaders joined Becker's to discuss the healthcare trends they're concerned about, from private equity to workforce shortages. 

HCA Healthcare is facing mounting pressure to give up control of Asheville, N.C.-based Mission Health, which it acquired in 2019.

The overarching trends in healthcare affect ASCs in unique ways, making monitoring industry developments a key to success at outpatient surgery centers. 

From potential Stark law amendments to a noncompete ban, here are four recent federal moves that are affecting physicians:

Demand for physician specialists is growing, according to AMN Healthcare's 2024 "Review of Physician and Advanced Practitioner Recruiting Incentives," report. 

The ASC industry is largely fragmented, with roughly 68% of ASC facilities operating independently as of 2023. 

David Ricks, CEO of Eli Lilly, one of the largest companies in the U.S. by revenue, earned more than $25 million in 2023, according to a report from Equilar listing CEO pay for the 100 largest companies by revenue.  

There are four women in the U.S. with net worths of more than $1 billion who earned their fortune in healthcare, according to the Forbes' Real-Time Billionaires rankings.

From CFOs to ASCs, the pressure to meet margins as costs soar and reimbursements decline affects  all of healthcare. 

After earning a net revenue of $5.1 billion in the second quarter of 2024, Dallas-based Tenet Healthcare cemented its status a major player in the healthcare market at large. 

It is becoming more difficult for ASCs to remain independent as costs rise and reimbursement declines. 

ASCs across the country are facing skyrocketing practice costs paired with declines in reimbursements from payers. 

Physicians, executives and some of the biggest names in healthcare — such as Optum and even CMS — have begun  piloting value-based payment systems. Given that the care model has been found to improve patient outcomes, lower costs and reduce burnout, many ASCs have set their sights on value-based care.

ASC leaders and hospitals alike are facing major obstacles to profitability as operational costs soar and Medicare and private payer reimbursement rates sink. 

Nearly 6.7 million adults in the U.S. have heart failure, with prevalence expected to rise to 8.5 million by 20301,2. While heart failure is a chronic, progressive disease, advances in technology are changing the way it is managed. There are tools that can provide patients and their healthcare team with actionable insights to help manage heart failure before it progresses to a later stage.

ASC development company Atlas Healthcare Partners has appointed Heather Richards its next CFO.

Pennsylvania has inked a law limiting noncompete agreements for certain healthcare providers, lawyer Craig Brooks from Houston Harbaugh wrote in JDSupra July 23. 

A bipartisan bill has been introduced in the House of Representatives would amend aspects of the Affordable Care Act passed to ease the ban on physician-owned hospitals.

Physician autonomy is top of mind for Vladimir Sinkov, MD, founder and CEO of Las Vegas-based Sinkov Spine Center. 

Even before inflation and the finalized pay cut for 2024 are factored in, Medicare physician payment has effectively declined 26% since 2001, according to the American Medical Association.