Outpatient Surgery Access Act of 2026

This bill aims to modernize Medicare payments for ambulatory surgical centers (ASCs) by aligning their annual payment updates with those for hospital outpatient department (OPD) services , effective 2027. It mandates that ASC payment updates will match the OPD fee schedule increase factor, adjusted as specified. Crucially, the legislation prohibits the Secretary from applying any ASC-specific budget neutrality adjustments that would reduce payments to offset increases. Instead, when calculating budget neutrality for hospital outpatient services, the Secretary must now also consider expenditures made under the revised ASC payment system, fostering a more equitable and consistent payment framework for outpatient surgical procedures.