Study says ASCs more efficient setting
Ambulatory centers perform surgery more efficiently than hospitals and could offer a viable way for the nation keep to pace with a growing demand for outpatient procedures, according to a study published in the May issue of "Health Affairs."
The authors are health economists Elizabeth Munnich of the University of Louisville (KY) and Stephen Parente of the University of Minnesota in Minneapolis. The researchers analyzed Centers for Disease Control and Prevention data for 52,000 surgical visits at 437 facilities over four years. They found that surgery center patients spent 25% less time undergoing outpatient surgery than hospital patients, and they inferred that individual patient costs were $363 to $1,000 lower while their healthcare was just as satisfactory.
Munnich and Parente predict in their study that the number of outpatient surgeries in hospitals alone will continue to climb by 8% to 16% each year through 2021. The Congressional Budget Office has said that in two more years, 25 million more Americans will have health insurance as a result of the Affordable Care Act (ACA). The statistic has raised questions as to how healthcare providers will meet the anticipated surge in demand.
"Ambulatory surgery centers are a high-quality, lower-cost substitute for hospitals as venues for outpatient surgery," Munnich said. "Their increased use may generate substantial cost savings, helping achieve the ACA’s goals of reducing the cost and improving the quality of healthcare."
