The North Carolina General Assembly returned to Raleigh on January 25 to begin their work for the year. The most important issue for NCASCA is the potential repeal of the Certificate of Need (CON) laws. Our association has worked hard to prevent repeal for the last several years.

Late last year, there was a great deal of talk about tying Medicaid expansion in with CON reform in a give and take. This year, the House has wasted no time passing HB 76 out of committee. The bill was sent to the floor and passed 92-22. The bill is now in the Senate. 

The Senate is another matter entirely. CON repeal, or at least major amendments to the CON laws, have been on their agenda for a long time.  They will continue to discuss these issues, and will most likely amend the HB 76. NCASCA will be actively working on this issue as the Legislative session goes forward.

Medicaid expansion brings up the potential of almost 500,000 new eligible patients. If it becomes law, ASCs will be faced with more potential cases where money is lost due to low reimbursement. With that background, we are working with the N. C. Department of Health and Human Services and the Legislature to see if those rates can be increased so as to make it more attractive for ASCs to accept Medicaid cases. It is a very complicated issue and NCASCA will keep you informed on our progress.