Membership votes clear the way
for AAASC, FASA merger Jan. 1
Members of the two leading trade associations for ambulatory surgery centers (ASCs) "overwhelmingly" approved an agreement to merge, clearing the way for the emergence on Jan. 1 of the new Ambulatory Surgery Center Association (ASC Association, for short).
In a Nov. 30 announcement, FASA and the American Association of Ambulatory Surgery Centers (AAASC) said the separate votes by members of both organizations were "nearly unanimous" in favor of the merger. FASA President Kathy Bryant, who will be CEO of the newly combined organization, said ASC Association "will provide a unified voice for ASCs and enhance the value of all the benefits and services that both AAASC and FASA currently offer their members."
AAASC Executive Director Craig Jeffries, who will not be part of the leadership of the new organization, said, "The votes reaffirm what many in the ASC community have been saying for some time: one association that can advocate for the owners and operators of ASCs will strengthen the ASC community in new and important ways."
ASC Association's board of directors will include 10 members from the existing boards of FASA and its Foundation for Ambulatory Surgery in America; five members of AAASC's existing board; and two members to be appointed, who are not currently members of either FASA's or AAASC's boards. The associations said they will post nomination information to fill those two board seats on the new association's Web site.
As previously announced, Alsie Sydness-Fitzgerald, CASC, current FASA chair-elect, will serve as initial chair of ASC Association's board, and AAASC board member David Shapiro, MD, will be chair-elect and succeed Sydness-Fitzgerald at the conclusion of her term as chair. Current AAASC President Joseph Banno, MD, and current FASA Chair Allen Hecht both will serve the new organization as past chairs. Also named to be board members of ASC Association were Nap Gary, secretary; Jerry Henderson, CASC, treasurer; Joe Clark; Greg Cunniff; David George, MD; Michael Guarino; Sandra Jones, CASC; Keith Metz, MD; Brent Lambert, MD; John Schario; and Donna St. Louis.
Also effective Jan. 1, the education and research arm of ASC Association will be known as the Ambulatory Surgery Foundation. The foundation's board will include five members from the existing FASA/foundation boards and three members from the existing AAASC board. Shapiro will serve as chair of the new foundation's board. Other members of the board will be Ann Geier, RN, MS, CNOR, CASC; Dick Hanley; Jovanna Lee, RN, BSN, CASC; Sarah Martin; Margaret Orman; Debra Stinchcomb, RN, CASC; and Arnaldo Valedon, MD.
AQA alliance adopts 31 quality measures—AQA Alliance—originally known as the Ambulatory Care Quality Alliance—adopted 31 quality measures for practitioners in 25 surgical and medical specialties during its fall meeting in Washington, D.C. Addition of the new standard quality measures brings to 80 the total of quality measures adopted by AQA.
During the fall meeting, measures were approved for use among the 20 surgical specialties and subspecialties represented by the Surgical Quality Alliances, as well as by rheumatologists, clinical endocrinologists, dermatologists, ophthalmologists, neurologists and radiologists.
AQA, a national coalition of 150 collaborating organizations, aims to reach consensus on and facilitate widespread implementation of standard measures that have cleared the National Quality Forum's review process or are set for NQF review. AQA's members represent dozens of physician specialties, consumer groups, employers, government agencies, health insurance plans and accrediting and quality groups.
CMS affirms priority of serving existing certified providers—Citing three consecutive years of underfunded survey and certification budgets and a rash of new providers applying for initial participation in Medicare, the federal Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) advised state survey agency directors last month that attaining "deemed" Medicare status through recognized accreditation organizations "is likely to be the fastest route to certification."
CMS reaffirmed its "longstanding policy" of making "complaint investigations, recertifications and other core work for existing Medicare providers a higher priority, compared with certification of new Medicare providers." It noted that since 2002, the number of Medicare-participating rural health clinics has gone up almost 49%, the number of participating ASCs is up more than 38%, and that the numbers of newly participating hospices, home health agencies, dialysis facilities and nonaccredited hospitals also have burgeoned.
Calculators for final CMS 2008 payment rules—Both FASA and the American Association of Ambulatory Surgery Centers have posted calculators on their Web sites based on the final calendar year 2008 ASC payment rules issued by CMS. View AAASC's payment calculator and FASA's payment calculator.
ASC growth surge in Pennsylvania—The number of licensed ASCs in Pennsylvania grew from 48 in Fiscal Year 1997 to 232 by May 2007, according to a report filed last month by the Pennsylvania Health Care Cost Containment Council. Twenty-eight new ASCs opened in the state between June 2006 and May 2007, and during FY 2006, 27.5% of all outpatient diagnostic and surgical procedures in the state were performed in ASCs.
Despite the rapid growth, the $609.7 million in net patient revenue reported by 205 ASCs that operated for more than six months in FY 2006 represented only about 5.8% of the outpatient revenue received by the state's 174 general acute-care hospitals. On the other hand, the 21.02% average total operating margin reported for ASCs in FY 2006 far exceeded margins recorded for other healthcare facilities covered by the report. For example, general acute-care hospitals reported an average 5.51% margin.
Read more stories in this issue.
