New CMS Proposed Rule Encourages Value-Based Reimbursement Based on Patient Outcomes When Payers and Drug Manufacturers Negotiate Payment for Pricey Therapies

Jul 29, 2020 | Compliance, Legal, and Malpractice, Laboratory Management and Operations, Laboratory News, Laboratory Operations, Laboratory Pathology, Laboratory Testing

Clinical laboratories and anatomic pathology groups should consider this another example of how CMS is taking forward steps to encourage value-based payment arrangements throughout the health system With the sky-high cost of many prescription drugs and gene therapies, it was only a matter of time before the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) would seek to link reimbursement for them to patient outcomes. A recent CMS proposed rule (CMS-2842-P) concerning value-based purchasing...

Clinical Diagnostics Laboratory in Texas Charged $2,315 for One Coronavirus Test and Later Claims High Price Was a ‘Billing Error’

Jul 27, 2020 | Coding, Billing, and Collections, Compliance, Legal, and Malpractice, Laboratory Management and Operations, Laboratory News, Laboratory Operations, Laboratory Pathology

Media reporting on disparities in COVID-19 test billing sparks renewed calls for increased transparency in medical laboratory test charges Recent media reports of massive disparities in the prices charged for COVID-19 lab tests throughout the United States have citizens and law makers alike again calling for increased transparency in clinical laboratory test charges. One recent example involves the New York Times (NYT), which after learning that Austin-based Gibson Diagnostic Labs (GDL) of...

COVID-19 is Mutating and A Scripps Research Study Reveals the Coronavirus May Become Even More Infectious

Jul 24, 2020 | Instruments & Equipment, International Laboratory News, Laboratory Instruments & Laboratory Equipment, Laboratory Management and Operations, Laboratory News, Laboratory Pathology, Laboratory Testing, Management & Operations, Precision Medicine

Researchers found evidence indicating that the virus has—under selection pressure—made itself more stable, giving it a “significant boost in infectivity” While the COVID-19 pandemic continues to spread across the United States and throughout the world, new research suggests that a coming genetic mutation within the SARS-CoV-2 coronavirus may make it much more dangerous than it already is. This finding has significant implications for clinical laboratories that perform COVID-19 testing and the...

Banner Health Introduces Virtual Waiting Rooms in 300 Medical Clinics Across Its Nationwide Healthcare System

Jul 22, 2020 | Instruments & Equipment, Laboratory Instruments & Laboratory Equipment, Laboratory Management and Operations, Laboratory News, Laboratory Operations, Laboratory Pathology, Management & Operations

As digital healthcare continues to gain acceptance and regulatory support, clinical laboratories will need to help patients provide biological samples for virtual doctor visits Patterns are emerging in healthcare that will likely impact clinical laboratories now and into the future. Trends in telehealth and mobile health (mHealth) that were just beginning to develop before the COVID-19 pandemic have accelerated with the outbreak, and many are predicted to remain once the pandemic is over,...

With Consumer Demand for Ancestry and Genealogy Genetic Tests Waning, Leading Genomics Companies are Investigating Ways to Commercialize the Aggregated Genetics Data They Have Collected

Jul 20, 2020 | Laboratory Instruments & Laboratory Equipment, Laboratory Management and Operations, Laboratory News, Laboratory Operations, Laboratory Pathology, Laboratory Sales and Marketing, Laboratory Testing, Management & Operations, Precision Medicine

Genomics experts say this is a sign that clinical laboratory genetics testing is maturing into a powerful tool for population health Faced with lagging sales and employee layoffs, genomics companies in the genealogy DNA testing market are shifting their focus to the healthcare aspects of the consumer genomics data they’ve compiled and aggregated. Recent analysis of the sales of genetic tests from Ancestry and 23andMe show the market is definitely cooling, and the analysts speculate...

Clinical Laboratory Testing of USS Theodore Roosevelt’s Crew During COVID-19 Outbreak Offers Insights into the Coronavirus’ Impact on Young Healthy Adults

Jul 17, 2020 | Laboratory Pathology

The CDC and US Navy study reveals common symptoms and suggests best protective measures to prevent spread in enclosed environments that clinical labs and pathology groups could use to protect their staff members Results from a study conducted by the US Navy and the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) of sailors onboard the USS Theodore Roosevelt during the recent COVID-19 outbreak aboard the ship may be useful for pathologists and clinical laboratory managers. The study...