By Joseph Burns, from the Volume XXVII No. 1 – January 6, 2020 issue
CEO SUMMARY: Among hospital administrators, the popular wisdom is that their clinical lab is a cost center. This thinking leads them to consider drastic cost-management strategies that include partnering with commercial labs to manage in-hospital lab testing and the outright sale of lab outreach programs. On the other side of this debate, innovative health system
By Mary Van Doren, from the Volume XXVI No. 17 – December 16, 2019 issue
This is an excerpt of a 3,163-word article in the Dec. 16, 2019 issue of THE DARK REPORT (TDR). The full article is available to members of The Dark Intelligence Group.
CEO SUMMARY: There was plenty of bad news in 2019 for clinical labs and pathology groups. Yet lurking inside this news are clear opportunities –
By Robert Michel, from the Volume XXVI No. 17 – December 16, 2019 issue
CEO SUMMARY: There are both surprises and several valuable insights to be harvested from THE DARK REPORT’s “Top 10 Lab Industry Stories for 2019.” Financially, 2019 proved to be a tough year for both clinical labs and anatomic pathology groups in the United States. One reason is because Medicare and private payers continue to use
By Robert Michel, from the Volume XXVI No. 13 – September 23, 2019 issue
Spectra Laboratories, a division of the national dialysis company Fresenius Medical Care, will soon open a new 200,000 square foot laboratory facility in Memphis. The new lab will employ more than 300 people and will be located only 15 minutes from the Memphis International Airport and the Memphis world hub operated by FedEx Corporation. The
By Mary Van Doren, from the Volume XXVI No. 12 – September 3, 2019 issue
This is a synopsis of two in-depth articles in the Sept. 3, 2019 issue of THE DARK REPORT (TDR). The full articles are available to members of The Dark Intelligence Group.
CEO SUMMARY: Since April, 2019, the federal Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has taken steps that target clinical laboratories that perform pharmacogenetic (PGx) tests. In
By Joseph Burns, from the Volume XXVI No. 12 – September 3, 2019 issue
CEO SUMMARY: Since April, the federal Food and Drug Administration has taken steps that target clinical laboratories that perform pharmacogenetic (PGx) tests. In response to letters from the FDA, some PGx lab companies have stopped reporting data that predicts a patient’s response to certain medications. Some pathologists and lab executives have criticized the FDA’s actions
By Robert Michel, from the Volume XXVI No. 7 – May 20, 2019 issue
CEO SUMMARY: There was an interesting consensus that emerged from the 80 sessions and 118 speakers at this year’s Executive War College in New Orleans earlier this month. The consensus centered around two themes. One theme is disruption, which is bad news for those labs that hope to maintain the status quo. The other theme
By Joseph Burns, from the Volume XXVI No. 5 – April 8, 2019 issue
CEO SUMMARY: By its name alone, the National Correct Coding Initiative (NCCI) Policy Manual implies that it will be accurate and consistent with other coding initiatives. But nine groups representing various clinical laboratories say NCCI guidelines that the federal Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services issued in December and implemented on Jan. 1 are inconsistent
By Joseph Burns, from the Volume XXVI No. 2 – February 4, 2019 issue
WITH EACH NEW RULING about coverage for a proprietary diagnostic assay, Medicare officials send a message to the entire clinical laboratory industry that any lab company with a proprietary test needs to submit adequate clinical evidence that demonstrates two positive aspects of the test.
First, that the assay accurately measures the biomarkers that it says it
By Joseph Burns, from the Volume XXVI No. 2 – February 4, 2019 issue
CEO SUMMARY: It is ironic that, after the federal Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) enacted the deepest price cuts to the Part B Clinical Laboratory Fee Schedule in more than 50 years, a U.S. Senator now asks CMS why it will pay billions more for lab testing. The question from Iowa Senator Chuck
