Becker's ASC Review

30 JOINT VENTURES Hospital acquisition of physician practices up 128% in 5.5 years: 4 details By Rachel Popa H ospitals acquired 8,000 medical practices be- tween July 2016 and January 2018, according to data from Avalere Health and the Physicians Advocacy Institute. e key details to know: 1. Between July 2012 and January 2018, the number of hospital-acquired physician practices rose from 35,700 to 80,000, an increase of 128 percent, or double the number of hospital-owned practices. 2. From July 2016 to January 2018, 14,000 physicians le private practice and joined hospitals; 44 percent of physi- cians in the U.S. were employed by hospitals or health systems in January 2018, an increase from one in four in July 2012. "e continued trend of hospital-driven consolidation is dramatically reshaping the healthcare system," said PAI president and CEO of the North Carolina Medical Society Robert Seligson. "PAI will continue to advocate for fair, transparent policies and champion physician clinical autonomy, regardless of the practice setting, to ensure that physicians can continue to deliver the best possible care to their patients." 3. All U.S. regions experienced an increase in hospital- owned practices over the course of the time frame studied, with regions seeing a total increase in the range of 91 percent to 303 percent. 4. Physician employment rose from 94,700 employed phy- sicians in mid-2012 to 168,800 in January 2018, an increase of over 70 percent. "As the health field moves from volume-based to value- based care, America's hospitals and health systems are working with physicians, other caregivers and their communities to create a better system of care for patients that is coordinated, convenient and more economical and efficient," said Melinda Hatton, general counsel for the American Hospital Association in a statement to Becker's ASC Review. "ese changes in the healthcare field are leading many hospitals and health systems to explore new ways to improve quality, reduce costs, become more responsive and provide more convenient access to care to meet their patients' needs. Hospitals are strengthening linkages to each other, and to physicians, in an effort to improve quality and efficiency and to better coordinate patient care." n Syracuse Orthopedic Specialists opening orthopedic surgery center in April — 5 insights By Eric Oliver S yracuse (N.Y.) Orthopedic Specialists will open its 47,000-square-foot Specialists' One-Day Surgery Center in April, moving its outpatient surgical procedures into the center soon after it opens. What you should know: 1. The surgery center has eight operating rooms, 16 preopera- tive beds, 27 recovery beds and eight extended stay rooms. 2. SOS surgeons will provide foot and ankle, hand and wrist, joint replacement, spine and sports medicine procedures. 3. All six fellowship-trained SOS joint replacement surgeons will perform procedures at the center. 4. Brett Greenky, MD, commented on the new center, saying, "The space allows us to offer joint replacement patients the most current technology in a comfortable setting. The joint replacement team began offering one-day procedures within the past year and it is becoming a preferred option for some patients." 5. After opening the new center, SOS will move out of its location in Syracuse-based North Medical Center into space adjacent to the center. n Illinois group sells 2 ASCs By Eric Oliver B elleville (Ill.) Surgical Center is seeking state permission to sell its two surgery centers in response to declining patient volumes, the St. Louis Business Journal reports. What you should know: 1. Belleville Surgical Center closed Physicians' Surgical Center and Belleville Surgical Center mid-year 2018, after HSHS St. Elizabeth's Hospital opened a new facility in O'Fallon, Ill. Sev- eral independent physicians in the area became affiliated with the hospital's medical group, which decreased the surgical centers' caseload. 2. BSC plans to sell PSC's operations and BSC's land and building to Shakeel Ahmed, MD for $50,000. 3. Belleville Surgical Center Director of Operations Kevin Ham- ers told the Business Journal Dr. Ahmed would be, "an ideal operator" for the clinic. He said, "We are glad that he will soon be providing his services to the residents of Belleville." 4. Belleville Surgical Center is a Deerfield, Ill.-based Surgical Care Affiliates. n

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