Volume XXII NO. 8 - June 1, 2015 Archives

RFID Lab Inventory System Saves $465K in First Year

CEO SUMMARY: Seeking ways to automate every aspect of work flow, the clinical laboratory at St. Francis Health System in Tulsa, Oklahoma, implemented a unique automated laboratory inventory management system that utilizes RFID. In the first four months, the system helped the hospital cut the value of inventory on hand by $296,000. Another direct cost savings was a 75% reduction in staff time required for inventory control. Payback from this investment was swift and lab administration says it is saving more than $169,000 each year because of this system.

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June 1, 2015 Intelligence: Late Breaking Lab News

Late Breaking Lab News / By Robert Michel

It’s a laboratory acquisition that is worth US$1.3 billion. In Europe, Cinven, a private equity company, will acquire Labco SA of Paris, France. Labco operates medical laboratories in France, Spain, Italy, Portugal, Belgium, and the United Kingdom. It reports annual revenue of US$714 million, performs 150 million clinical laboratory tests yearly, and employs more than 6,000 people.

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LabCorp’s Plans for Docs, Pathologists and Labs

Commentary and Opinion by R. Lewis Dark / By R. Lewis Dark

WHAT’S IN THE FUTURE FOR PHYSICIANS, PATHOLOGISTS, AND CLINICAL LABORATORIES if Laboratory Corporation of America’s strategy for managing lab test utilization is deployed across the country per the company’s plan?

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Some Florida Docs Are Not Using BeaconLBS System

Clinical Laboratory Trends / By Joseph Burns

CEO SUMMARY: Some physicians in Florida are not complying with UnitedHealthcare’s laboratory benefit management program since the claims impact took effect on April 15. Although officials from UnitedHealthcare and BeaconLBS, a business division of LabCorp, state publicly that the program is going well, physicians and several state medical associations continue to voice serious objections to several key elements of UnitedHealthcare’s lab test utilization management program.

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Some Labs Report Faster Pay for Molecular, Genetic Tests

Laboratory Billing / By Joseph Burns

DURING RECENT MONTHS, some labs are reporting improvement in how their claims for certain molecular and genetic tests are being reimbursed. This is progress from the financial crises experienced during 2013 for many labs performing molecular and genetic tests.

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Lab Test Utilization Delivers Big Gains at Cleveland Clinic

Clinical Laboratory / By Joseph Burns

CEO SUMMARY: Since the launch of a laboratory test utilization program in 2011 at the Cleveland Clinic, more than 35,000 duplicate or inappropriate test orders have been stopped. The test utilization team introduced five initiatives that are not designed to cut spending but to introduce evidence-based and consensus-driven methods to lab-test ordering. Another benefit is that needless blood draws are being eliminated, thus improving patient care and satisfaction.

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