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UHC
For Labs, a Little Angel and Devil Sit Behind Z-Codes
By R. Lewis Dark | From the Volume XXX, No. 8 – May 30, 2023 Issue
Much lies underneath the surface of UnitedHealthcare’s (UHC) new policy mandating Z-code use for molecular tests covered under its commercial health plans. It’s a developme…
UHC’s Z-Code Requirement to Commence on Aug. 1
By Scott Wallask | From the Volume XXX, No. 8 – May 30, 2023 Issue
CEO SUMMARY: In what may be an alarming development for certain clinical laboratories, as of Aug. 1, UnitedHealthcare will require Z-codes for molecular test claims filed under its co…
UnitedHealthcare Policy Change Requires NPI Numbers on Medicare Advantage Claims
By Robert Michel | From the Volume XXX, No. 8 – May 30, 2023 Issue
ANOTHER NEW POLICY RECENTLY ANNOUNCED by UnitedHealthcare (UHC) sets a deadline for June 1, 2023, requiring clinical laboratories and other ancillary providers to include the …
Payers Request More Claims Documentation
By Robert Michel | From the Volume XXX, No. 7 – May 8, 2023 Issue
CEO SUMMARY: Both anecdotal evidence from lab professionals and numbers-based data from XiFin point to a problem: More payers require clinical labs to produce more documentation that a test claim i…
Optum to Offer Laboratory Benefits Management to other Health Plans
By Robert Michel | From the Volume XXIX, Number 9 – June 27, 2022 Issue
This is an excerpt of a 1,355-word article in the June 21, 2022 issue of THE DARK REPORT. The full article is available to members of The Dark Intelligence Group. CEO SUMMARY: UnitedHealth Group subsidiary Optum announced a new laboratory benefits management program aimed at impr…
UnitedHealth’s Optum to Offer Lab Test Management
By Robert Michel | From the Volume XXIX, Number 9 – June 27, 2022 Issue
CEO SUMMARY: UnitedHealth Group subsidiary Optum announced a new laboratory benefits management program aimed at improving utilization of genetic/molecular clinical laboratory testing. The goal is to save health plans money while bringing genetic test validity data prominently into …
UnitedHealth’s Lab Test Registry Implementation Delayed Again
By Robert Michel | From the Volume XXVIII, No. 14 – October 18, 2021 Issue
ANOTHER DELAY WAS ANNOUNCED FOR IMPLEMENTATION of UnitedHealthcare’s Laboratory Test Registry Protocol, which requires clinical laboratories to register each of their tests with the health insurer. This latest delay likely is the result of operational issues on behalf of the managed care com…
How to Achieve Success with Genetic Test Prior Authorization
By Robert Michel | From the Volume XXVIII, No. 10 – July 26, 2021 Issue
AS MANAGED CARE PAYERS INCREASINGLY REQUIRE PRIOR AUTHORIZATION FOC GENETIC TESTS, clinical laboratories should understand the ins and outs of what it takes to get reimbursed for testing they provide. Almost all payers now require prior authorization (P…
Interesting New Surprises for Lab Leaders
By R. Lewis Dark | From the Volume XXVIII, No. 9 – July 6, 2021 Issue
Unexpected and surprising things continue to happen in the clinical laboratory industry. You might consider that to be one unifying theme to the intelligence briefings we present in this issue of The Dark Report. For example, a…
Genesis Lab Lawsuit Pursues UnitedHealth Over Unpaid Test Claims
By Robert Michel | From the Volume XXVIII, No. 9 – July 6, 2021 Issue
This is an excerpt of a 1,946-word article in the July 6, 2021 issue of THE DARK REPORT (TDR). The full article is available to members of The Dark Intelligence Group. CEO SUMMARY: New case law in how health insurers should reimburse for COVID-19 lab test claims might be one outc…
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Volume XXXII, No. 6 – April 21, 2025
Now that a federal judge has vacated the FDA’s LDT rule, The Dark Report analyzes the judgement and notes the various steps the FDA could take in response. Also, lab testing at pharmacies is proving to be less successful than was once anticipated.
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