Here are five recent updates about outpatient total joint replacement:
1. CMS proposed adding total knee arthroplasty to the ASC-payable list in 2020, a move that's "long overdue," according to Michael Gillman, MD, CMO and founder of Las Vegas-based BullsEye Ortho. CMS also proposed removing total hip arthroplasty from the inpatient-only list, making the procedure eligible for Medicare reimbursement in the hospital outpatient and inpatient setting.
2. Just 15 percent of the 900,000 hip and knee joint replacements performed in the U.S. in 2016 were done in an outpatient setting, but Sg2 researchers predict that volume will double by 2026. Nearly half — around 900,000 — will move to outpatient centers, according to Sg2.
3. Joint replacement outpatients are as happy, if not happier than, their inpatient counterparts, according to a survey presented at the American Academy of Orthopedic Surgeons Annual Meeting, March 12-16 in Las Vegas.
4. Burnsville-based Minnesota Valley Surgery Center became the third ASC to receive the Accreditation Association for Ambulatory Health Care's advanced orthopedic certification, which recognizes exceptional performance improvement strategies related to outpatient joint replacement surgery. Surgery Center of Long Beach (Calif.) and the Gold Coast Surgicenter in Chicago were also recognized.
5. Medical technology company Conformis partnered with Westchester, Ill.-based ASC developer Regent Surgical Health to reduce costs and improve outcomes related to outpatient total joint replacement procedures.