Jul 6, 2011 | Laboratory News, Laboratory Pathology
Medicare officials seeking public comment during the July 18 meeting
Changes in how the Medicare program will reimburse pathology groups and clinical laboratories for genetic tests and molecular diagnostic assays will be one of the important topics at an upcoming meeting in Baltimore on July 18, 2011. The federal Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) will conduct the meeting at its headquarters and is asking for public comment as it develops coverage guidelines and reimbursement levels for the 2012 laboratory test fee schedule.
As many pathologists and medical laboratory managers know, a major effort to revise and update CPT codes for genetic and molecular tests performed by clinical laboratories is moving forward. The goal is to recognize advances in this field of diagnostic testing by updating the CPT codes. Another goal, widely supported by private health insurance plans, is to reduce the use of “code stacking” as the primary coding and claims methodology that must be used for a large number of genetic and molecular medical laboratory tests.
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May 18, 2011 | Laboratory News, Laboratory Pathology
Israel currently has about half the pathologists per capita as does the United States
Inadequate numbers of pathologists will soon threaten the quality and integrity of clinical pathology laboratory testing in the nation of Israel. That’s the assertion of leading pathologists, who point out that oncology, cancer testing, and molecular diagnostics are likely to be the most threatened by the shortage of experienced pathologists in Israel.
There are only 119 pathologists in Israel, most of whom are over the age of 50. That is one reason why health leaders in that country fear what lies ahead if pathologist understaffing is not addressed by the Israeli health system. According to a recent article in The Jerusalem Post, the decreasing numbers of pathologists—already at dangerously low levels—threatens to erode the quality of medical laboratory testing services in what has been a thriving medical community.
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May 2, 2011 | Laboratory Pathology, News From Dark Daily
Pathologists take note! Companion diagnostics is the driver in this transaction.
Genetic testing giant Myriad Genetics, Inc. (NASDAQ:MYGN) will pay $80 million to acquire Rules-Based Medicine (RBM) of Austin, Texas, a privately-held companion diagnostic company in a deal announced last week.
Myriad Genetics, best known to pathologists and clinical laboratory managers for its portfolio of predictive genetic cancer tests, believes its purchase of Rules-Based Medicine will give it a faster entre into companion diagnostics. RBM is a life sciences company that has well-established relationships with key therapeutic drug companies.
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Apr 8, 2011 | Laboratory News, Laboratory Pathology
Health insurers want to control the rapid growth in expensive genetic and molecular assays
For many clinical laboratories and pathology groups, genetic tests and molecular diagnostic assays are the fastest-growing part of the test menu. This is true both in the increased volume of specimens for genetic tests and the growing number of such medical laboratory tests that are accepted for clinical use.
This is a bright spot for the nation’s clinical pathology laboratories. That’s because many genetic tests and molecular assays deliver significant clinical value to the physician and his or her patient—while generating ample reimbursement for the medical laboratory that performs these tests.
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Apr 6, 2011 | Digital Pathology, Laboratory News, Laboratory Pathology
Goal is to map genetic, transcriptomic, and epigenomic changes in various cancer types
Surgical pathologists are likely to gain great benefit from a worldwide research collaboration that has $500 million in funding, and whose participants plan to identify and publish data about the genetic complexities involved in at least 50 different types of tumors. It is a research project that will directly contribute to the development of new and more precise clinical laboratory tests.
This research is being conducted by geneticists from around the globe. They are collaborating to describe the genomic, the transcriptomic, and the epigenomic changes in 50 tumor types. Expectations are that this research will produce an unprecedented leap in knowledge and launch a new age in cancer research.
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