Follow the Money
The math can be tricky in the business of surgery.
W
e devoted much of our
December
issue to
the business of sur-
gery. Our cover story
details how President-
elect Donald Trump will
impact health policy and
whether Obamacare will
be gone just as you were
getting used to it. Then
there's the story of one sur-
gery center's foray into the
brave new world of pricing
transparency, followed by a look
at the truly absurd way Medicare pays ambulatory surgery centers.
We top if off with something you might not know: how anesthesia
providers bill for their services and what an anesthesia contract at
your facility could be worth to them.
ASCs have long gotten the short end of the reimbursement stick
from Medicare. In 2017, surgical centers will be paid on average 50%
of what hospital outpatient departments (HOPD) receive for the same
surgical services. Half is insultingly low, and it could prevent ASCs
from performing certain cases (especially device-intensive ones) on
Medicare patients.
But when it comes to pricing transparency, a surgical center's lower
fees could be a blessing in disguise. Andy Poole, FACHE, CEO of the
Monticello Community Surgery Center in Charlottesville, Va., tells
8 • O U T PA T I E N T S U R G E R Y M A G A Z I N E • D E C E M B E R 2 0 1 6
Editor's Page
Dan O'Connor
• PHOTOSHOPPED PRESIDENTS Obamacare made
our cover in March 2015 and again in December 2016.
