Spine surgery is increasingly moving into outpatient ambulatory surgery centers, which operate on a highly efficient and cost-effective basis. However, with regulatory changes and downward pressure on reimbursements, ASCs may need to dig deeper in cost-cutting measures.

As the healthcare environment changes over the next year, there are several steps ambulatory surgery centers can take to position themselves for success in the future. Traditionally, a few simple tweaks could make a big difference for ASCs, but not all initiatives are that simple.

The Food and Drug Administration has announced its proposal to create a unique device identification (UDI) system for medical devices, which will impact both suppliers and providers. The rule itself has its genesis in a report from 1999 stating that 100,000 people die annually as a result of medical errors that could be avoided. In 2004, a law for identifying pharmaceutical products using the NDC was created and went into effect in 2006. Pharmaceutical companies were required to print bar codes on their products so they could be scanned at the bedside and in the operating room. There was no comparable standard such as the NDC for medical-surgical products, which set things in motion for UDI.

A Tarrytown, N.Y.-based plastic surgery ASC is looking for a seasoned RN or experienced healthcare/clinical manager with ASC experience.

A six-physician practice in central Georgia, is searching for a board certified or board eligible spine surgeon to join the practice, where one of the current spine surgeons is retiring.

A thriving spine and pain institute in Illinois is looking for a board certified or board eligible spine surgeon.

More ambulatory surgery centers are performing orthopedic cases today, and those cases are increasingly complex. With the addition of these cases come new challenges for negotiating payor contracts, but surgery centers can still achieve good rates if they leverage their position.

Here are five tips for billing and coding for spine procedures at surgery centers from National Medical Billing Service's Senior Vice President, Coding Angela Talton.

Having cash on hand is important for any business, especially healthcare providers in today's uncertain economic environment.

Here are 13 ASCs where surgeons perform spinal fusions.