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10 ASC MANAGEMENT Missouri medical group breaks ground on outpatient surgery center By Eric Oliver J efferson City (Mo.) Medical Group broke ground on its outpatient surgery center March 16, local NBC affiliate KOMU reported. The surgery center will replace the group's cur- rent center and will be considerably larger. The group said it was limited by its current surgery center's space. The center should open in the spring or summer of 2022. The group is still deciding what it will do with its current surgery center once the new center opens. n North Carolina hospital closes surgery center to save $1.1M By Eric Oliver A sheboro, N.C.-based Randolph Health closed the Ran- dolph Health Surgery Center to save $1.1 million in oper- ating costs, the Courier-Tribune reported. The surgery center had two operating rooms, and the hospital has five on its main campus, according to system CEO Angie Orth, who spoke with the publication. Ms. Orth said to the publication, "Unfortunately, we did not have enough volume or demand for both of those centers to be open at the same time." Randolph Health worked with the center's surgeons to transition their procedures back to the hospital. Because Randolph closed the surgery center, it was able to cut back on its contract-based labor costs, realizing additional savings. The hospital is still under lease for the surgery center, and is cur- rently using it as a vaccination clinic. n 15 closures, mergers & acquisitions affecting medical groups this year By Laura Dyrda M edical group practice and surgical center closures and sales in 2021: 1. Santa Rosa-based Northern California Medical Associates closed May 1 and laid off 26 physicians. e group cited natural disasters and financial decline over the last three years for the closure. e group will lay off 151 employees. 2. Gilford, N.H.-based Advanced Orthopaedic Specialists said it closed at the end of March aer its service agreement with Laconia, N.H.- based Lakes Regional General Hospital ended and wasn't renewed. e organizations have a service agreement dating to 2004, but were unable to reach a new agreement. 3. SCL Health in Broomfield, Colo., acquired Montana Orthopedics based in Butte March 16. e practice's four surgeons became SCL Health Medical Group employees. 4. Optum agreed to acquire Newton, Mass.- based Atrius Health, a 715-person physician group, according to a March 2 report. e deal needs approval from the Massachusetts Health Policy Commission, Department of Public Health and Federal Trade Commission. 5. US Orthopaedic Partners revealed March 2 it bought Jackson (Miss.) Anesthesia Pain Centers and Oxford (Miss.) Orthopaedics and Sports Medicine. 6. Gastro Health in Miami, Fla., on March 1 acquired Digestive Disease Associates, with two locations in Maryland, and Wood- bridge, Va.-based Associates in Gastroenter- ology in January. 7. In February, four solo primary care physi- cian practices in Shelburne, Vt., reported plans to close their practices. Two of the physicians are retiring, and two are joining larger organizations. 8. Specialty Surgery Center of Connecticut in Stamford and Bloomfield (Conn.) Ambu- latory Surgery Center sold majority owner- ship stake to Deerfield, Ill.-based Surgical Care Affiliates. 9. PE GI Solutions in Jamison, Pa.; North Bergen, N.J.-based Ambulatory Center for Endoscopy; and Teaneck, N.J.-based Holy Name Medical Center purchased Hudson Bergen Endo Surgical Center in North Bergen Feb. 12. e center includes three partnering physicians who are expected to perform 4,000 procedures annually. 10. Toledo, Ohio-based ProMedica Central Physicians acquired Toledo Orthopaedic Surgeons in January. 11. Acuity Eye Group in Pasadena, Calif., acquired Escondido, Calif.-based Premiere Sur- gery Center. e ASC focuses on eye surgery. 12. ValueHealth purchased Kendall Pointe Surgery Center in Oswego, Ill., Jan. 14. e acquisition included 2 acres of land and the ASC building for future expansion. 13. Eyes of York (Pa.) sold to Vision Inter- national Partners Jan. 4. Vision Innovation Partners now has 35 practices and eight surgery centers in Maryland, Washington, D.C., Virginia and Pennsylvania. 14. Dallas-based GI Alliance purchased Digestive Health Associates of Texas in Dallas; Cleburne (Texas) Endoscopy Center; and Oak Lawn, Ill.-based GI Associates of Chicago in January. 15. St. Louis Park, Minn.-based ENT Part- ners bought Arlington Heights, Ill.-based Arlington ENT–Head & Neck and Facial Plastic Surgery in January. n