Congratulations ambulatory surgery centers! The ASC industry won a legislative victory last week when the U.S. House of Representatives on July 24 passed the ASC Payment Transparency Act of 2018 (H.R. 6138).
A press release from the Ambulatory Surgery Center Association (ASCA) highlighted the following provisions:
- An ASC industry representative will be added to the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) panel that helps determine payment policies for hospital outpatient departments and ASCs. Law currently requires panel members be employed by a hospital or health system.
- CMS will be required to disclose the criteria used to justify exclusion of procedures from the Medicare-approved list of ASC procedures.
In the press release, ASCA CEO William Prentice said, "This legislation will assure better communication between ASCs and government agencies that regulate us, leading to better decisions that will benefit Medicare beneficiaries requiring outpatient surgery. We are grateful that these provisions have bipartisan support in the House and look forward to their consideration in the Senate soon."
Note: Interested in taking a more active role in and becoming a champion for the ASC industry? Check out ASCA's National Advocacy Day program. It brings ASC community members to Capitol Hill to advocate on behalf of the industry. The next National Advocacy Day is September 5. Learn more here.
