Five ASC administrators and executives examine how their centers are participating in or preparing for value-based care.
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Raymond Hino. Administrator of Skyway Surgery Center (Chico, Calif.): "To date there has been very little effect of value-based care on our facility. However, we expect that to change in the near future as mandatory reporting requirements and reimbursement of ASCs continues to evolve. As a Medicare-participating ASC, our facility participates in the Ambulatory Surgery Center Quality Reporting Program. Additionally we have voluntarily chosen to participate in the Outpatient and Ambulatory Surgery Survey Program.
Although not currently required, participation in OAS CAHPS, provides our facility with national peer comparison data so that we can measure ourselves against other facilities. In my opinion, the result has been a success. We consistently achieve scores in the 90th percentile, which is a marketing advantage and we are positioning our ASC for success if this survey ever becomes mandatory.
Value-based care is not only about mandatory quality reporting; it is also about changes in reimbursement. We entered into our first bundled payment agreement earlier this year. It will not be the last one. Since we are already partners with our physician providers, it makes sense that we would become partners for innovative payment systems as well. We are actively involved in pursuing additional bundled payment agreements that will fuel our organization into the future."
Heather Hilgendorf-Cooley. Administrator of Spring Park Surgery Center (Davenport, Iowa): "Our ASC has been built around the notion of providing quality care at a low cost. Our ASC, like many other ASCs, have fewer complications, infections and errors. In addition, our ASC is largely owned by our physicians, so the buy-in to value-based care has been evident since the inception of our ASC in the late 1980s."
Alfonso del Granado. Administrator of Ashton Center for Day Surgery (Hoffman Estates, Ill.): "Value-based care has not yet directly affected our ASCs, but we are aggregating, analyzing and benchmarking quality data more aggressively than ever in order to provide a clear picture to payers that their total cost per episode of care will be lower overall at our facilities than with local competitors."
Kris Kilgore. Administrator of Surgical Center of Michigan (Grand Rapids): "We are constantly looking at ways to be more efficient and cost effective by standardization of supplies, instruments and equipment, not over-ordering and then discarding expired items. We are currently working on instituting a computerized inventory system to allow us to do case costing, share supplies with our other ASCs and increase our buying power to help decrease our pricing with vendors and GPOs due to increased volume."
Jarett Landman. CEO of Orthopedic Surgical Center of the North Shore (Peabody, Mass.): "I think we have always been well positioned for value-based care. As an independent ASC, we have always been the low-cost provider of services compared to our hospital or HOPD counterparts; same surgeons, same minimally invasive techniques, same quality outcomes and increased customer satisfaction due to the efficiencies and cost savings we provide to our patients. I am excited by the challenge that outpatient total joints will provide, as we again strive to prove that quality healthcare can be delivered safely, effectively and inexpensively."