Washington, D.C. – Today, Reps. Van Duyne (R-TX-24) and Larson (D-CT-01) introduced the Outpatient Surgery Access Act of 2026 to modernize Medicare payments for ambulatory surgical centers and promote site-neutral policies that support lower-cost outpatient care for seniors. 

Ambulatory surgical centers often perform the same procedures as hospitals at significantly lower cost, but Medicare payment policies have historically treated these sites differently. By aligning payment updates and removing outdated adjustments, this legislation supports greater site neutrality, expands access to outpatient surgery, and helps ensure seniors can receive care in the most appropriate and cost-effective setting.

“Outdated Medicare policies are limiting access to high-quality and lower-cost care,” said Rep. Beth Van Duyne. “Our healthcare system should reward high-quality, lower-cost care, not stand in its way, like current rules fail to treat outpatient surgical centers fairly. This bipartisan legislation supports expanded access to outpatient surgery facilities and ensures our nation's seniors can receive the best care.”

“Ambulatory Surgical Centers provide preventive services and essential procedures to thousands of patients across the State of Connecticut every year,” said Rep. John B. Larson. “I’m proud to join with my colleague, Rep. Beth Van Duyne, on this common-sense, bipartisan bill to protect outpatient care for Connecticut residents and Americans across the country. We will continue to work together on solutions that connect patients with the care they need and save taxpayer money.” 

“Surgery centers perform millions of essential elective procedures for Medicare beneficiaries every year,” said Ambulatory Surgery Center Association (ASCA) Chief Executive Officer Bill Prentice. “Ensuring an accurate and stable payment system is key to protecting patient access to low-cost, high-quality surgery centers. ASCA thanks Representatives Larson and Van Duyne for introducing this important bill.”

Background
The Outpatient Surgery Access Act of 2026 aligns how Medicare updates payments for ambulatory surgical centers (ASCs) with hospital outpatient departments beginning in 2027, and removes outdated adjustments that suppress ASC reimbursement. These changes modernize Medicare’s payment structure and better reflect the shift toward lower-cost outpatient surgical care.

The legislation:

• Aligns annual payment updates for ASCs with hospital outpatient departments starting in 2027.

• Eliminates ASC-specific budget neutrality adjustments that suppress payments.

• Requires CMS to consider ASC spending when calculating outpatient payment adjustments.

Together, these reforms modernize the ASC payment framework and help ensure Medicare policies keep pace with the shift of surgical care from hospitals to outpatient facilities.

Click HERE to read bill text.