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Good news for labs this month! The potential cuts to Clinical Lab Fee Schedule (CLFS) and changes in test reimbursement due to the Protecting Access to Medicare Act (PAMA) have been delayed until 2025.

The highly debated Verifying Accurate Leading-edge IVCT Development (VALID) Act was first introduced in June of 2021 aiming at reforming the way in vitro diagnostic tests (IVDs) are regulated.

The past three years has seen unprecedented emergency federal funding for COVID-19-related vaccines, tests, and treatments. With the HHS-OIG’s recent move to increase scrutiny of past expenditures, is your healthcare practice prepared?

Through clinical laboratory tests, healthcare providers can diagnose specific diseases or conditions, monitor patient health, and make decisions for patient care. The tests themselves undergo evaluation that includes ratings for the complexity of performing the test in the lab and knowing a test’s complexity helps lab personnel know which accreditation standards apply.

While there are 18 areas of lab business that are most targeted by the OIG, CMS, and DOJ for investigation, most lab investigations will focus on one of the seven mentioned below. If your lab is selected, odds are the investigation will focus on one or more of these areas of lab compliance violations.

The original Stark Law enacted in 1989 only applied to referrals for clinical laboratory services. Those self-referral provisions prohibited a physician from referring a Medicare patient to a clinical laboratory with which the physician or an immediate family member had a financial relationship.

Originally created to eliminate kickbacks in toxicology labs, the EKRA law is now being used by the Department of Justice to target various entities in healthcare, including all types of laboratories. Whether you are a research, diagnostic, or clinical laboratory, EKRA applies to you.

With a growing interest and movement in sustainability, the laboratory industry is looking at ways to incorporate changes into their processes and facilities. When done correctly, not only can these efforts impact your overall environmental footprint, but they can also have a great impact on your bottom line.

One of the biggest challenges lab managers face when renovating an occupied lab is protecting current operations. Learn more about considerations for renovating a working lab and six tips for success. However, with the right team and planning, lab managers can maintain operations while upgrading their lab.