Backpage Q&A: Your Role in Bending the Curve

Q&A with Bill Prentice, JD, CEO of the Ambulatory Surgery Center Association

How is the ASC space different since you entered it more than 20 years ago? What has remained constant? 
What has changed is the steady growth in awareness among patients and payers about surgery centers and the reliable patient care and positive outcomes they deliver. What hasn’t changed, unfortunately, is the need for better reimbursement, particularly from government payers. 

What is the most important trend shaping the ASC industry today? 
I don’t believe there is one trend. As we continue to put the global COVID-19 pandemic behind us, some of the top issues we see for surgery centers are workforce shortages, supply chain challenges, escalating costs and a growing demand for services.

What do you foresee influencing the ASC space the most in the next 10 years? 
The cost of providing health care is both a challenge and an opportunity for the surgery center community. If commercial and government payers institute the correct payment policies, direct more of the patients that can be seen safely in the surgery center setting to us and increase the types of procedures we can perform thanks to clinical advancements, we can play a small but critical role in bending the healthcare cost curve and free up billions of dollars for other healthcare needs.

How has your time in Washington impacted your ability to advocate for ASCA? 
I’ve been involved with legislative and regulatory advocacy for most of my career. When you spend that much time working with policymakers, you develop a greater appreciation for the value of having good data, building coalitions, and knowing when and where compromise is possible. As it is often said, politics is the art of the possible. 

Sum up your hopes for the future of the ASC industry.
I’m certain the future for surgery centers is bright, simply because all trends point to more and more health care being provided in outpatient settings. My hope is that the surgery center community continues to attract the best and brightest minds in health care and builds on clinical advances to provide economical, accessible and top-quality outpatient surgical care to the patients who need it. OSM