Dive Brief:
Ascension has entered a definitive agreement to acquire ambulatory surgery provider Amsurg, the nonprofit health system said Tuesday.
The deal, which Ascension expects to close later this year pending regulatory approval, will add more than 250 ambulatory surgery centers across 34 states to Ascension’s outpatient portfolio.
A spokesperson for the health system declined to comment on the size of the deal. However, sources told Bloomberg that Ascension was paying $3.9 billion for the provider.
Dive Insight:
Ascension has been steadily working to rightsize its portfolio, turning away from investments in inpatient facilities and toward outpatient care. The St. Louis-based health system has divested dozens of hospitals in recent years, including facilities in Illinois, Michigan and New York.
By acquiring Amsurg, Ascension is aiming to get broader access to a growing outpatient market and help meet patient demand for convenient and community-based care, according to Ascension President Eduardo Conrado.
“The shift from inpatient to outpatient care is accelerating nationwide. By investing in AMSURG’s strong ASC network, we are proactively responding to this transformation,” Conrado said in a statement.
Still, Ascension’s current portfolio remains hospital-heavy and includes 94 wholly owned hospitals. It also has ownership stakes in 27 additional hospitals.
Ascension is chasing a financial turnaround through its strategic reshuffling. The health system posted a $1.1 billion net loss in 2024, in part due to fallout from a cyberattack last summer. Ascension most recently reported a $101.2 million operating loss for the third quarter of its 2025 fiscal year, compared with a $82.6 million loss in the prior year period.
Amsurg was previously owned by physician staffing firm Envision Healthcare but was split off from the company during Envision’s bankruptcy restructuring in 2023.
Since parting ways with Ascension, Amsurg — one of the largest ASCs by revenue — has focused on expanding its footprint.
In July 2024, the company acquired an ownership interest in Oregon-based River Road Surgery Center, and at the start of this year acquired an ownership interest in Texarkana Surgery Center in Northeast Texas.
