When you have been admitted into a hospital as an inpatient, but the hospital registers you as an outpatient, your medical or surgical care is considered as outpatient hospital care – even if you stay overnight in the hospital for observation purposes.

Outpatient care, sometimes called ambulatory care, is defined as medical care or treatment that does not require an overnight stay in a hospital or medical facility. Outpatient care may be administered in a medical office or a hospital, but most commonly, it is provided in a medical office or outpatient surgery centre.

Outpatient care can include routine services such as check-ups or visits to clinics. Even more involved procedures such as surgical procedures, so long as they allow you to leave the hospital or facility on the same day, can still be considered as outpatient care. Many surgical services, rehabilitation treatments, as well as mental health services are available as outpatient services. Outpatient care tends to be less expensive than inpatient care since it is often less involved and does not require a patient's continued presence in a facility, which uses up less of the hospital or medical clinic's resources.

For the purposes of insurance, most outpatient care is broken out based on the type of service provided primary care physician, specialist, mental health, etc.). Outpatient surgery is one area that is specifically identified, and describes your share of costs should you need a procedure or operation that does not require overnight admission at the facility. Like inpatient treatments, the costs associated with the facility itself and the physician/surgeon performing the procedure are often treated as two different coverage benefits.

Covered services include but are not limited to:

 Observation services

 Emergency room and outpatient clinic services, including same-day surgery

 Mental health care

 Hospital-billed laboratory tests

 Blood transfusions

 Certain drugs

 Medical supplies, such as splints and casts

 X-rays and other radiation services