Timeline

History
of
ASCs

The ASC community from inception to present day.


Print the ASC Journey

1960s

Healthcare professionals and government officials begin calling for affordable, accessible, quality outpatient surgery alternatives.

1966-1967

Facilities dedicated to providing ambulatory surgery care open in conjunction with hospitals in California and Washington, DC.

1968

Wallace Reed, MD, and John Ford, MD, develop objectives and commit their idea for a freestanding ambulatory surgery facility to paper for the first time. They begin collecting endorsements from governmental bodies and members of the healthcare community to obtain financing for the project.

1970

The first ASC opens for business on February 12. By the summer, 225 surgeons working in that ASC have the support of more than 40 insurers.

Early 1970s

A handful of other ASCs open throughout the United States.

1971

The American Medical Association (AMA) adopts a resolution endorsing the concept of outpatient surgery under general and local anesthesia for selected procedures and selected patients.

1973

The American Society of Anesthesiologists (ASA) establishes some of the first standards for the ASC community when it releases “Guidelines for Ambulatory Surgical Facilities,” a list of nine criteria approved by the ASA House of Delegates.

1974

The Society of Freestanding Ambulatory Surgical Care—the organization that would eventually become the Foundation for Ambulatory Surgery in America (FASA) and later the Ambulatory Surgery Center Association (ASCA)—is incorporated.

1975–1976

Rapid growth—a total of 42 surgery centers are in operation in the US by 1975. An additional 25 facilities open in 1976.

1975–1979

ASCs begin to become accredited through The Joint Commission and the Accreditation Association for Ambulatory Health Care (AAAHC).

1978

The American Association for Ambulatory Surgery Centers (AAASC) is incorporated.

1979

The ASC community continues to grow as the number of ASCs reaches triple digits.

1982

Medicare approves payment to ASCs for approximately 200 procedures.

1987

Medicare expands its list of covered procedures in ASCs to 1,535 procedures.

1988

The number of ASCs in the United States reaches 1,000.

Using the information from a 1986 cost survey of ASCs, Medicare implements a new payment system for ASCs, which remains the basis for ASC payments today.

1994

Beth Derby is elected the first woman president of FASA and becomes the first nurse to serve in this capacity.

1995

Medicare expands the ASC list to cover more than 2,000 procedures.

ASCs go international with the formation of the International Association for Ambulatory Surgery (IAAS) during the First International Congress on Ambulatory Surgery in Brussels.

1997

FASA moves to expand services to its members and demonstrate the quality provided in ASCs by offering an industry-wide Outcomes Monitoring Project.

2002

The Board of Ambulatory Surgery Certification (BASC) creates the Certified Administrator Surgery Center (CASC)™ credential.

2003

FASA expands its advocacy activities with a full year of events involving its members, including a legislative seminar and the first Save Our Surgicenter (SOS) Day letter-writing campaign, which results in more than 10,000 letters sent to members of Congress on April 21.

2004

More than 4,000 ASCs in the US perform eight million surgeries annually.

Medicare agrees to reimburse ASCs for providing more than 2,400 procedures to its beneficiaries.

2006

The ASC community establishes the ASC Quality Collaboration to develop ASC quality measures, publicly report data and support high-quality care in ASCs.

2008

On January 1, AAASC and FASA merge to form present-day ASCA.

2010

The number of ASCs exceeds 5,000.

2011

More than 5,300 ASCs in the United States perform 23 million surgeries annually.

Medicare grants approval for ASCs to perform more than 3,500 procedures.

2012

Medicare implements the first national quality reporting program for ASCs.

2015

The number of ASCs grows to 5,400.

2016

In December, Congress passes the 21st Century Cures Act, legislation that includes two key provisions that benefit Medicare patients and the physicians who care for them in ASCs.

2018

BASC introduces the Certified Ambulatory Infection Preventionist (CAIP)™ credential.

2019

In March, an ASC representative is appointed to the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) Advisory Panel on Hospital Outpatient Payment (HOP).

In September, CMS announces a final rule to relieve burdens on healthcare providers related to transfer agreements with hospitals, medical history and physical assessments and emergency preparedness.

2020

On January 1, CMS finalizes the addition of total knee arthroplasty (TKA) and six new cardiac codes to the ASC-payable list.