With the trends in healthcare moving toward value-based care models, ASCs could be in the perfect position for growth. 

Three lawsuits have been filed against healthcare giant UnitedHealth Group and UnitedHealthcare in the last month — including two ASCs filing suits. 

Here are five updates from the last 60 day about one the country's largest insurers: 

Medicare per-procedure payments to hospital outpatient departments were 2.1 times larger than payments to ASCs, according to new research published by the Rand Corp. 

Oklahoma Heart Hospital South, a physician-owned hospital based in Oklahoma City, paid $1.2 million to settle billing fraud allegations May 16.

National Medical Billing Services acquired anesthesia, ASC and pain management revenue cycle management provider Medi-Corp, according to a May 17 news release shared with Becker's.

Surgery centers have advocated for site-neutral payments with hospital outpatient departments, so the same rates are paid regardless of where the procedure is performed.

CMS has passed several measures in the last year affecting ASC reimbursements, including removing 255 procedures from the ASC-payable list. For Cathy McCue, MSN, RN, administrator of Uropartners Surgery Center in Des Plaines, Ill., CMS' actions point to a prioritization of hospitals because of a strong hospital lobby. 

Snagging profitable payer contracts and high reimbursements has historically been an obstacle for ASCs, particularly when competing with hospitals' big pockets. 

Hospitals across the U.S. are seeing labor and supply costs rise with inflation and are clashing with insurers about raising contracted rates, according to The Wall Street Journal.

Growth opportunities across the ambulatory surgery center (ASC) space continue.

Portland, Maine.-based independent practice Fore River Urology is cutting its contract with Anthem, Bangor Daily News reported May 3.

Advanced Surgery Center in Fort Lee, N.J., has filed a lawsuit against UnitedHealthcare for allegedly failing to pay for hernia-related procedures.

Thirteen percent of denied prior authorization requests made by Medicare Advantage organizations met Medicare coverage rules, according to a review conducted by the HHS Office of Inspector General released in April. 

Insurers are sending mixed messages to ASCs and independent physicians. On one hand, they want surgery centers and physicians to stay independent to keep costs low; on the other, they are increasing prior authorizations and denial policies that make it harder to get surgeries approved.

Donald Woo Lee, MD, was sentenced to 93 months in prison and ordered to pay more than $4.5 million for his role in a Medicare fraud scheme, the U.S. Justice Department said April 28.

Value-based care is gaining traction in the ASC industry as CMS and payers see opportunities in bundled payments over traditional fee-for-service models. 

Here are five updates from CMS in the last two weeks:

Here are more than 50 stats about ASC operating expenses from VMG Health's 2022 "Multi-Specialty ASC Benchmarking Study:"

ASC billing services provider Surgical Notes is promoting several senior managers after the company's client base more than tripled over the last 12 months.