Nov 13, 2019 | Compliance, Legal, and Malpractice, Digital Pathology, Laboratory Management and Operations, Laboratory News, Laboratory Operations, Laboratory Pathology, Laboratory Testing, Management & Operations
Medical laboratory leaders need to take opportunities to stay abreast of government and payer activity, particularly as payer audits become tougher, say legal experts Even compliant clinical laboratories and anatomic pathology groups are reporting tougher audits and closer scrutiny of the medical lab test claims they submit for payment. This is an unwelcome development at a time when falling lab test prices, narrowing networks, and more prior-authorization requirements are already making it...
Nov 8, 2019 | Compliance, Legal, and Malpractice, Instruments & Equipment, Laboratory Instruments & Laboratory Equipment, Laboratory Management and Operations, Laboratory News, Laboratory Operations, Laboratory Pathology
This is not the first time genetic-testing company Orig3n has been scrutinized by state and federal investigators over its business practices It’s not often that multiple employees of a clinical laboratory company go public with criticism about the quality of their lab company’s tests. But that is what is happening at Orig3n. Problems at the Boston-based genetic testing company were the subject of an investigative report published by Bloomberg Businessweek (Bloomberg). In September, Bloomberg...
Nov 6, 2019 | Laboratory Management and Operations, Laboratory Operations, Laboratory Pathology, Laboratory Testing, Management & Operations
Some companies save so much in healthcare cost they pay their employees to participate in medical tourism programs Medical tourism is not new, but it’s changing, and clinical laboratories have a role to play in the models employers use to save money on their employees’ health coverage costs. Employers that manage the entire process—from securing passports for their employees, to ensuring they have access to high-quality care outside the country’s borders—report saving money as well as...
Nov 4, 2019 | Laboratory Management and Operations, Laboratory News, Laboratory Operations, Laboratory Pathology
Medical laboratories may find opportunities guiding hospital telehealth service physicians in how clinical lab tests are ordered and how the test results are used to select the best therapies Telehealth is usually thought of as a way for patients in remote settings to access physicians and other caregivers. But now comes a pair of studies that indicate use of telehealth in inpatient settings is outpacing the growth of telehealth for outpatient services. This is an unexpected development that...
Nov 1, 2019 | Compliance, Legal, and Malpractice, Laboratory Management and Operations, Laboratory News, Laboratory Operations, Laboratory Pathology, Laboratory Testing
Could local and federal prosecutors ask clinical laboratories to disclose information on their client physicians’ test-ordering activities when investigating medical errors? Are physicians facing greater risk of criminal indictments when one of their patients dies, and investigators find that physician impairment or inappropriate medical treatments contributed to the patient’s death? Could clinical laboratories be drawn into federal investigations of their client physicians? The healthcare...
Oct 30, 2019 | Instruments & Equipment, Laboratory Hiring & Human Resources, Laboratory Instruments & Laboratory Equipment, Laboratory Management and Operations, Laboratory News, Laboratory Operations, Laboratory Pathology, Laboratory Sales and Marketing, Laboratory Testing
Sale of respected laboratory information system company may be an early sign that investors believe clinical laboratories and pathology groups are ready to upgrade their LISs and add needed capabilities In the past 10 years there has been little disruption to the laboratory information systems (LIS) market that clinical laboratories and anatomic pathology groups use. Yet, over that same 10-year period, almost every hospital and physician group practice adopted an electronic health system...
