Congressional candidate Knute Buehler, MD, was endorsed March 12 by the Political Action Committee of the American Association of Orthopaedic Surgeons.

Adding total joints to an ASC is becoming a lucrative prospect as the Baby Boomer population ages and technology improves. According to data1 from the Advisory Board Market Scenario Planner, the number of joint replacements done in the ambulatory setting is estimated to grow 96 percent in the next five years.

Black and Hispanic patients are about 20 percent less likely than white patients to receive outpatient care, according to a new study published in Clinical Orthopaedics and Related Research.

Novant Health opened its $3 million, 13,000-square-foot clinic in Charlotte, N.C., March 6.

    Three ASCs adding or expanding total joint programs:

  Physicians at the Christus Santa Rosa Surgery Center in New Braunfels, Texas, recently performed the center's first total joint replacement.

Green Bay, Wis.-based Orthopedic & Sports Medicine Specialists moved its Oconto Falls clinic to a space in HSHS St. Clare Memorial Hospital, also in Oconto Falls, Gillett News reports.

Oak Orthopedics is now a part of Illinois Bone & Joint Institute, one of the largest independent, physician-owned orthopedic practices in the state.

Christus Surgery Center-New Braunfels (Texas) introduced total joint procedures, according to Corridor News.

William Balcom, MD, an orthopedic surgeon practicing at The Surgery Center in Shrewsbury, Mass., recently performed the first outpatient total knee replacement at an ASC in Worcester County. Dr. Balcom spoke with Becker's about setting up the program, potential challenges and more.

Orthopedic surgeons generate over $3 million for hospitals, on average according to a survey conducted by physician search firm Merritt Hawkins.

CMS added total knee replacement to the ASC-payables list for 2020, and with it, a flux of patients are expected to migrate to the outpatient space. Centers can capitalize on the extra surgical volume, but Medicare's reimbursement rate will require ASC leaders to eliminate operational waste to fully recognize the opportunity.

  Baylor Scott & White Health is opening an orthopedic sports medicine practice with an ASC in Waco, Texas, Feb. 27, according to Fox 44 News.

Devicemaker Smith+Nephew wants to help ASC administrators perform more orthopedic cases through its new Positive Connections platform consisting of software and service offerings.

A new proposed rule to the comprehensive care for joint replacement model from CMS aims to add outpatient hip and knee replacements to the definition of an episode of care, among other changes.

The Oregon Surgical Institute added a surgical robot for hip and knee surgeries, increasing surgical volume in the three months since acquiring the robot last September.

Four orthopedic, spine ASCs recently opened or announced:

Phoenix-based Banner Health plans to buy the Orthopedic Clinic Association, adding both physicians and advanced practice providers to its network, according to the Phoenix Business Journal.

A surgeon at the Andrews Institute Ambulatory Surgery Center in Gulf Breeze, Fla., performed the center's first total knee replacement with the Navio robotic system.

INOV8 Surgical, an orthopedic practice and ASC in Houston, has acquired the TSolution One robotic system from THINK Surgical.