Both large ASC groups and individual ASCs continued to grow in 2022, according to a Jan. 23 report from VMG Health.
The ASC industry is historically fragmented but has slowly begun to consolidate in the last few years. Roughly 70 percent of ASCs remain independent, leaving "room for further consolidation at the individual-facility level," the report said.
Here's what ASCs need to know:
1. Tenet Health, parent company of ASC chain United Surgical Partners International, finalized a $1.1 billion deal in 2020 to acquire 45 ASCs from SurgCenter Development.
2. In 2021, USPI entered a $1.2 billion deal to acquire SurgCenter Development's remaining centers — adding 92 ASCs in 21 states. USPI continued making strides in consolidating those 92 ASCs in 2022, the report said, which is expected to continue in 2023.
3. In February 2022, Rise Fund acquired Blue Cloud Pediatric Surgery Centers — the largest operator of pediatric dental ASCs in the United States.
4. In April 2022, Optum purchased Houston-based physician group Kelsey Seybold for $2 billion, gaining two ASCs.
5. In May 2022, Surgery Partners announced a partnership with ValueHealth to expand access to high-value surgical care. The deal will build new ASCs and deploy ValueHealth's value-based surgical programs across Surgery Partners' current and in-development locations.
6. In June 2022, USPI and United Urology Group formed a partnership for 22 ASCs. USPI also acquired a portion of ownership interests in United Urology ASCs in Maryland, Colorado and Arizona.
7. In December 2022, Ann Arbor-based University of Michigan Health announced plans to acquire Lansing, Mich.-based Sparrow Health System in a $800 million partnership. The investment will expand Sparrow's ASCs and neonatal care unit, according to the report.