Court Rules Against Ambulatory Surgery Centers in Fee Schedule Case

The North Carolina Court of Appeals ruled Tuesday that ambulatory surgery centers are not separate and legally distinct from hospitals, overturning a Wake County Superior Court decision that invalidated a new Medicare-based fee schedule for ASCs. The 3-0 ruling in favor of the North Carolina Industrial Commission was critical for employers and insurers because, had the commission’s appeal failed, payers would have been subject to at least $75 million in retroactive reimbursements. Surgical Care Affiliates sued the commission, alleging that the General Assembly did not authorize th...