A rising number of health systems are expanding their outpatient footprints and forging joint ventures to develop more ambulatory surgery centers as care continues to migrate from inpatient to outpatient settings.
Last year, Salt Lake City-based Intermountain Health, Cincinnati-based Bon Secours Mercy Health System, Columbus-based OhioHealth were among the health systems that formed joint venture partnerships to acquire and develop ASCs.
In a Jan. 4 VMG Health survey of 141 health system executives, including CEOs, CFOs, COOs, outpatient surgery ranked as the No. 1 service line for joint venture partnerships in 2024.
Here are the nine top service lines that health system executives would consider a joint venture partnership this year, according to the VMG Health survey:
1. Outpatient surgery: 60%
2. Behavioral health: 55%
3. Outpatient post-acute: 45%
4. Outpatient imaging: 45%
5. Physician services: 39%
6. Urgent care: 36%
7. Hospital-at-home: 35%
8. Inpatient post-acute: 29%
9. Laboratory: 28%
Note: 3% of health system executives surveyed said that they would not consider a joint venture partnership in any of these service lines this year.