By Robert Michel, from the Volume XXV No. 10 – July 9, 2018 issue
CEO SUMMARY: This summer, both Geisinger Health and Sanford Health will introduce genetic tests designed specifically for use by primary care physicians in their daily practice. This is a significant milestone on the road to wider deployment of precision medicine services. In the case of Sanford Health, it plans to offer patients a $49 genetic
By Robert Michel, from the Volume XXV No. 8 – May 29, 2018 issue
Ireland is dealing with a cervical cancer screening scandal that reaches back to laboratories in the United States. In recent months, the Irish public has learned that more than 200 women wrongly got negative Pap test results over a multi-year period. Many of these women did not learn of the erroneous test results for years after
By Robert Michel, from the Volume XXV No. 4 – March 5, 2018 issue
“More people took genetic ancestry tests last year than in all previous years combined,” declared Senior Editor Antonio Regalado in a story published on Feb. 18 by MIT Technology Review. He wrote that, just in 2017, the number of people who had their DNA analyzed with direct-to-consumer genetic genealogy tests more than doubled. According to
By Joseph Burns, from the Volume XXIV, No. 9 – June 26, 2017 issue
CEO SUMMARY: Pre-authorization of genetic tests is coming to physicians serving patients insured by Anthem, Inc. Its specialty benefits management company, AIM Specialty Health, will manage the program. AIM will work with InformedDNA, a company that specializes in genetic testing clinical decision support and genetic counseling for health insurers. Anthem has about 40 million members
By Robert Michel, from the Volume XXIV, No. 7 – May 15, 2017 issue
There is a new development in one of the whistleblower lawsuits filed against several lab companies that offered specialty cardiology tests. Earlier this month, the Department of Justice announced a settlement with Quest Diagnostics involving its acquisition of Berkeley HeartLab, which was acquired by Quest in 2011. The DOJ said that Quest agreed to pay
By Joseph Burns, from the Volume XXIII, No. 1 - January 19, 2016 issue
CEO SUMMARY: Advances in the speed, accuracy, and cost of next-generation gene sequencing making it possible for clinical labs to create thousands of new tests. How many new tests? NextGxDx, an information technology company, says the nation’s clinical laboratories are introducing new molecular and genetic tests at the rate of 10 per day! The company,
By Joseph Burns, from the Volume XXII NO. 10 - July 13, 2015 issue
CEO SUMMARY: Clinical laboratories of all sizes are poised to become the source of much of a hospital or health system’s “big data.” At many academic center labs, greater use of genetic and molecular testing requires that more space and more staff be devoted to data management. At the same time, the latest generation of gene sequencing instruments and molecular analyzers are cheaper, faster, and more automated. These systems make it feasible for even smaller labs to offer sophisticated genetic tests.
By Joseph Burns, from the Volume XXI NO. 10 - July 21, 2014 issue
CEO SUMMARY: At a recent coding and billing conference, pathology and lab clients of one of the nation’s largest revenue management companies agreed that three trends have caused lower revenues since the start of 2014. One trend seen by labs involves higher deductibles and copayments from patients. Another is the exclusion of local labs from
By Robert Michel, from the Volume XXI NO. 1 - January 13, 2014 issue
IN THE FINAL WEEKS OF 2013, the federal Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) announced that it would reduce the price it pays for the BRCA genetic test by 49%, to $1,438, effective on January 1, 2014.
For Myriad Genetics, Inc., this was not welcome news. Its share price fell by as much as 20%
By Joseph Burns, from the Volume XX No. 6 - May, 6, 2013 issue
CEO SUMMARY: Demand for specialized reference and esoteric testing is so robust at Dartmouth Hitchcock Medical Center in New Hampshire that the academic center is building an expanded laboratory facility to accommodate the increased volume of tests it handles each year. A favorable trend supporting these developments is the steady decline in the cost of
