ASC Association Update

California State Association Celebrates 20 Years of ASC Leadership

The California Ambulatory Surgery Association (CASA) came together in September to celebrate their 20th anniversary. CASA’s annual conference, which was held at the historic Hotel del Coronado in San Diego, was the perfect venue to celebrate the past and look toward the future. The meeting hit record registration with more than 230 attendees.

The celebration kicked off with an evening gathering of over 30 past and present CASA Board members, including four founding members of the organization. The following days were packed with educational sessions including two pre-conference workshops. The first was unique to CASA, a Franklin Covey workshop, addressing “The Seven Habits of Highly Effective ASC Leaders.” The second was an all day CASC review workshop made possible through a partnership with FASA.

Thursday opened with CASA president Scott Leggett conducting the annual business meeting and highlighting CASA’s goals for the upcoming year. Keynote speaker Jim MacLaren, winner of the ESPY 2005 Arthur Ashe Courage Award, then inspired the audience — moving them to their feet — with his message of attitude and perseverance.

Educational offerings continued the following two days with topics covering Medicare updates, quality reporting, contracting, innovative procedures, marketing techniques, electronic medical records, benchmarking, patient safety goals, barriers to care and physician leadership.

The culmination of the week was a beautiful dinner in the prestigious, historic Hotel del Crown room. On hand were Kathy Bryant, president of FASA, and AAASC executive director, Craig Jeffries, who ceremonially joined stage together to offer CASA a toast to its 20 years.

Brad Shannon of JG Parker Insurance was honored with the Richard LeBlanc Award for his outstanding years of dedication and service to CASA. The presentation of the award was made special by the presence of Connie LeBlanc wife of the late Richard LeBlanc. President Scott Leggett then reflected on CASA’s history and accomplishments injecting a bit of humor. Founding CASA board member Catherine Nichol summed the evening up with the following comment:

“I remember so well our first meeting and the early years that followed and I felt so privileged to sit in the room on the occasion of the 20 year anniversary and realize that many of the goals we set for the organization back then have actually been achieved; to grow to a size that would have a facility membership over 25, a paid executive director allowing for board members to focus their time and energy on issues vs. running the organization, a lobbyist to support us with the legislature, a real PAC fund, data that supports our mission, positive working relationships with our state government and agencies; OSHPD and the Department of Public Health, an organization that works closely with our national organizations on issues that affect us all and finally, an organization that stands as a role model for all states and one that we are so proud to support.”

The attendees — veteran and new — left the meeting energized, armed with new skills and information to tackle the upcoming year, and looking forward to the next meeting: The 2008 CASA annual meeting will be held in San Francisco at the Grand Hyatt September 3-5.

This Just In

CASA was hoping to conclude the year of celebration with the passing of their sponsored legislation establishing licensure criteria for ASCs in California. However, on October 14, California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger vetoed the CASA-sponsored bill AB 543 (Plescia). In his veto message, the Governor stated the bill did not go far enough to protect patients — specifically that the bill did not establish appropriate time limits for patients undergoing general anesthesia. The bill also required the Department of Public Health to respond to licensure surveys in a timely manner and maintain proper oversight of ASCs.

The Governor’s veto message stated the legislation restricted administrative flexibility and impacted the overall budget. The CASA leadership is extremely disappointed. Hours had been spent working with the Department of Public Health and all stakeholders to come to a workable agreement. But the defeat only strengthens the resolve for CASA and its members to continue to work on behalf of the industry.

“We firmly believe that CASA and the ASC industry is positioned to do something special in the years to come as patients and political leaders continue to recognize the value of ASCs in healthcare policy issues,” says Scott Leggett, CASA president. “The state and national leaders of our past have positioned our industry to exceed and the current leaders are positioned to take our industry to next level.”

CASA At A Glance

How long has the association been together?

The California Ambulatory Surgery Association (CASA) celebrated its 20th anniversary in September.

How many members are currently active?

Currently, CASA membership has reached 219 and is growing.

How often do association members meet?

CASA holds an annual meeting each fall and conducts educational seminars throughout the year.

What state issues are the association members really working to change right now?

CASA’s current focus is to establish ASC licensure standards in California.

What challenges have you faced or roadblocks have you conquered when dealing with the state legislation?

CASA has had a bill in each of the last two legislative cycles make it through the Assembly and Senate only to be vetoed by the Governor. The defeats have only strengthened our resolve to be proactive and move the industry forward.

What, as a state association, has proven to be the biggest challenge lately?

The biggest issue lately has been the legislative challenge and establishing licensure criteria. CASA feels that this is such an important issue for our state and our industry. Clear, concise and consistent licensure criteria is needed, as well as consistent oversight by the Department of Public Health.

What events or progress has the association made that members are particularly proud of?

The biggest accomplishment has been 20 years of coming together and understanding that we must have a unified voice working on behalf of ASCs. This has become even more apparent lately as demonstrated through our increased membership and increased political involvement. 

Can you tell us how the association has built rapport with other healthcare entities in the states, with key political figures, and with the community?

CASA recently set out to develop a unified message on what the ASC industry is and what it stands for. We have been actively taking this message to the state legislature, government entities and the press. Our members have been active at the grassroots level with community open houses and visits by legislators to their centers.

What drives the success behind the association?

The success is driven by our members and the unified message. CASA also has an extremely active and committed board of directors.

Do you have any advice for other state associations facing many of the same issues as yours? What has really worked for your team?

Develop a unified voice and work together closely. The CASA Board is also good at evaluating the needs of the members and the industry and making sure CASA is relevant to our membership and giving back to them in tangible ways. 

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