Even as COVID-19 cases decline nationally, supply chain disruptions related to the pandemic are still hurting ASC's ability to function.
Here are six ASC leaders' thoughts on the state of the supply chain:
Amar Setty, MD. CEO of Premier (Baltimore): The fragile supply chain for pharmaceuticals led to frequent and unpredictable drug shortages for years. COVID-19-related supply shocks have been equally profound — from syringes, needles and fluids, disposables, oxygen, etc. Shortages are leading to price increases. We are dealing with delays, cancellations and a lot of stress. The administration could do more to stimulate supply through policies to increase supplies.
Joe Peluso. Administrator of Aestique Surgery Center in Greensburg, Pa.: Unlike past crises, CMS is restoring the Medicare inpatient-only list while ignoring site-neutral payments between ASCs and hospital outpatient departments; does not address supply chain issues that drive up the cost of supplies; and attempts to utilize federal emergency authority to require mandates for healthcare and business workforces — without providing a comment period on the regulations, giving short time frame to implement, no clear guidelines and imposing loss of Medicare/Medicaid funding as conditions of participation for healthcare facilities.
Mark Spina. Director of operations at Endoscopy Center of Connecticut (Hamden): It's proving to be very difficult to get private payers to recognize the increase in labor and supply costs brought about by the labor shortage and supply chain disruptions in the economy.
Melissa Hermanson, RN. Administrator of Ambulatory Care Center (Vineland, N.J.): I'm also worried about the supply chain. We have already begun to experience backlogs and shortages of essential supplies again. Many manufacturers are down across the country and globally.
Robert Nelson. Executive director of Island Eye Surgicenter (Westbury, N.Y.): Now more than ever, ASCs must have a laser focus on their supply costs. Review every contract, and if you are not taking advantage of prices available through a group purchasing option, you must do so. More specifically, there are specialty-specific GPOs that are experts at working with vendors within their specialty. With proposed cuts to reimbursement, managing costs becomes imperative.
Dan Good. Materials manager of Copper Ridge Surgery Center (Traverse City, Mich.): One of my biggest concerns with the supply chain is the increase of back orders on commonly needed goods. There have always been back orders, but since the pandemic, there seems to be an inordinate amount of rolling back orders. These back orders take time and energy to source from another vendor or to find a clinically acceptable substitute.