Medicare releases 2016 final ASC payment rule

Editor's Note

On October 30, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) released the final 2016 payment rule for ambulatory surgery centers (ASCs).

ASC payment rates will increase by 0.3%, which is based on a projected inflation rate of 0.8% minus a 0.5% productivity adjustment required by the Affordable Care Act.

This payment update is significantly lower than the 1.1% update in the proposed rule, which was based on a rate of inflation of 1.7% minus a 0.6% productivity adjustment, the Ambulatory Surgery Center Association reports.

CMS also finalized the addition of 17 new codes to the ASC-payable list.

The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) released its final 2016 ASC payment rule today. ASC payment rates will increase by 0.3 percent in 2016. This increase is based on a projected rate of inflation of 0.8 percent minus a 0.5 percentage point productivity adjustment required by the Affordable Care Act.