AMSURG expands in northeast Texas with acquisition of Texarkana Surgery Center
AMSURG, an independent leader in ambulatory surgery center services, has acquired an ownership interest in Texarkana Surgery Center, an outpatient surgery center in northeast Texas, near the Arkansas border. Texarkana Surgery Center’s physicians offer same-day procedures in multiple specialties, including ophthalmology, orthopedics, gastroenterology, gynecology and general surgery. The freestanding, state-of-the-art facility spans 17,000 square feet and includes four operating rooms and three procedure rooms, ensuring patient convenience and comfort.
ASCQR Program participation remains high among ASCs
CMS released the calendar year 2025 Ambulatory Surgical Center Quality Reporting Program payment determination lists earlier this month. Of the 6,012 ASCs included in the release, 5,714 facilities will receive the full annual payment update (APU) for 2025. The other 298 ASCs required to participate did not meet all requirements for a full APU. That 298 number is down from 341 in 2024. ASCs that failed to submit data in 2024 are subject to a 2 percent penalty to their 2025 APU.
The ASCQR Program is a pay-for-participation program, not a pay-for-performance program. In other words, facilities are penalized for failure to report; they are not penalized based on any of the data that is reported.
CMS included 6,012 facilities in its data release, 4,271 of which were required to submit data in 2024 for 2025 payment determinations. The other 1,741 ASCs were not required to participate in the ASCQR Program for 2025 payment determinations. This is up from 1,340 that were exempt for 2024 payment determinations. Further analysis needs to be performed, but this could potentially be due to increases in the percentage of Medicare beneficiaries who are on Medicare Advantage plans instead of fee-for-service Medicare.
Covenant High Plains Surgery Center recognized by Newsweek as top ASC fourth year in a row
Covenant High Plains Surgery Center (CHPSC) is the highest-rated center in West Texas for a fourth year in a row, ranking among the top of the over 5,000 Medicare-certified ambulatory surgery centers (ASCs) nationwide analyzed by Newsweek and global research firm Statista for their honors list, America’s Best Ambulatory Surgery Centers 2025. The factors analyzed included quality of care, reputation, patient experience, and accreditation data.
CHPSC is the first in the region to perform robotic surgery with the Intuitive da Vinci X system, and its sister facility is the first in West Texas to perform robotic total knee replacement surgery using the Stryker Mako® surgical robot. It is also one of only a dozen ASCs in the nation to achieve Center of Excellence accreditation in bariatric (weight loss) surgery, Blue Cross Blue Shield Blue Distinction Center designation, Aetna Institute of Quality, and Optum Center of Excellence recognition, as well as being named Surgical Quality Partner by the American College of Surgeons.
Stony Brook Medicine moves to expand New York ASC
Stony Brook Medicine, which opened a 120,000-square-foot ambulatory care facility in Commack, N.Y., is expanding the facility with the addition of a 19,500-square-foot ASC that will house four operating rooms, a dedicated recovery and prep space, and onsite sterile processing. The new facility will focus on orthopedics, pain management, ophthalmology and urology, which all already have large footprints at Commack.