ASCs must overcome several roadblocks to maintain operations and be successful.
Andrew Lovewell, CEO of Columbia (Mo.) Orthopaedic Group, connected with Becker's to answer, "What is the biggest problem ASCs face today?"
Andrew Lovewell: The biggest problems ASCs face today are labor shortages (particularly anesthesia right now), Medicare payer issues and prior authorization issues.
The staffing issues in the healthcare space are not new. Today's shortage of anesthesia providers has been compounding for years and has turned into an incredible challenge for all. Not only is it difficult to find anesthesia coverage, finding coverage that understands and embraces the priorities and workflow of an ASC are seemingly impossible.
Medicare's payment policies are something that I still fail to understand. The inpatient only list is questionable at best. The theory behind still having shoulder replacement on the inpatient only list is baffling. On top of that, the delay of many procedures to be put on the permanent reimbursement list is challenging.
Lastly, the prior authorization issues that we face every day with commercial payers is overwhelming. Many of the rules seemingly change day to day, and the payer policies dictate provider decisions in a negative way many times. On top of that, many payer policies aren't up-to-date with new research, and we are chasing old assumptions.