Anterior cervical discectomy and fusion can be done in the outpatient setting, but reimbursements vary between ASCs and hospital outpatient departments, according to a study in the March 2025 issue of The Spine Journal.

Four notes:

1. Researchers looked at ACDF procedures at ASCs and HOPDs among commercially-insured patients aged 18 to 64 and measured preoperative and postoperative payments. 

2. Almost 18,200 cases were included. Most of them (85.2%) were at HOPDs.

3. ACDFs at the ASC were associated with a 9.8% higher immediate procedure reimbursement, 17.2% higher patient out-of-pocket expenditures and 11.7% higher surgeon reimbursement compared to the HOPD.

4. The study concluded, “We found that ASCs had significantly higher reimbursements compared to HOPDs. Regional variations in ASC utilization imply there are opportunities for standardization of care.”