Apr 15, 2013 | Compliance, Legal, and Malpractice, Laboratory Hiring & Human Resources, Laboratory News, Laboratory Operations, Laboratory Pathology
Biodiagnostic Laboratory Services’ president takes $33 million out of his medical company during the seven years of 2006-2013
Few clinical laboratory professionals were surprised at last week’s news that another medical laboratory company and a referring physician were hit with criminal indictments for violating Medicare anti-kickback statues and other federal and state laws.
The announcement was made by U.S. Attorney Paul J. Fishman of New Jersey. Defendants in this case are Biodiagnostic Laboratory Services LLC (BSL), of Parsippany, New Jersey, three of its executives, and one physician who referred medical laboratory tests to BSL.
Few laboratory professionals will be surprised at news of this case. After all, a substantial number of clinical laboratory professionals regularly see, within their service areas, examples of medical laboratory companies willing to interpret federal and state compliance laws quite aggressively and cross the line into illegal actions. What is uncommon is to have federal prosecutors build a criminal case against a lab company accused of having violated anti-kickback laws. (more…)
Apr 10, 2013 | Compliance, Legal, and Malpractice, Digital Pathology, Instruments & Equipment, Laboratory News, Laboratory Operations, Laboratory Pathology, Management & Operations
Ongoing federal program to encourage providers to adopt EHRs is not without its critics who contend the market is dominated by nation’s biggest health IT companies
News reporters have finally begun to notice that it is boom time for vendors of electronic health record (EHR) systems. Over the past three years, revenue and profits have soared at the nation’s biggest health information companies.
Of course, pathologists and clinical laboratory managers had front row seats to watch these events as they unfolded in recent years. Since 2010, every clinical laboratory and anatomic pathology group has been working to interface their laboratory information systems (LIS) with the EHR systems of parent hospitals and client physicians. (more…)
Apr 8, 2013 | Instruments & Equipment, Laboratory News, Laboratory Operations, Laboratory Pathology
DNA ‘dark matter’ will provide clinical laboratories and pathologists with a new specimen source and new methodology for developing useful diagnostic tests
Growing knowledge about DNA “dark matter” may soon make it possible for clinical laboratories to develop new assays that reveal clinical information useful in diagnosing and guiding therapeutic decisions. In genetics, “dark matter” describes the non-coding areas of DNA. Recent discoveries indicate that dark matter plays more important roles than previously thought.
Scientists at Vienna’s Research Institute of Molecular Pathology (IMP) recently developed a method that reliably detects the non-coding areas of DNA and simultaneously measures their activity quantitatively. The researchers then used this new methodology to study the genome of the Drosophila fly. Drosophila is widely used in genetic studies. These studies broadened the researchers’ understanding of processes such as transcription and replication in other eukaryotes, including humans. The IMP findings were published January 17, 2013, online by the journal Science. (more…)
Apr 5, 2013 | Digital Pathology, Instruments & Equipment, Laboratory Hiring & Human Resources, Laboratory News, Laboratory Operations, Laboratory Pathology
Advances in HIE technology and performance could prove beneficial to clinical laboratories and anatomic pathology groups
Even before most clinical laboratories have substantial experience with a full-function health information exchange (HIE) serving their region, one HIE expert is predicting that the next generation of HIEs is soon to arrive and will deliver more functionality.
“We’re maturing from HIE 1.0 to HIE 2.0,” declared Micky Tripathi. “We’re in a new world now.” Tripathi is in a position to know. He is CEO of the Massachusetts eHealth Collaborative. He also participates on the boards and/or steering committees of the Information Exchange Workgroup of the HIT Policy Committee, the eHealth Initiative, and the New England Health Exchange Network (NEHEN). (more…)
Apr 3, 2013 | Coding, Billing, and Collections, Compliance, Legal, and Malpractice, Digital Pathology, Instruments & Equipment, Laboratory Hiring & Human Resources, Laboratory News, Laboratory Operations, Laboratory Pathology, Laboratory Sales and Marketing, Managed Care Contracts & Payer Reimbursement, Management & Operations, News From Dark Daily
Financial and clinical fortunes may soon shift for many medical laboratory organizations
By every measure, the clinical laboratory industry is entering a high-stakes period during the next 24 months. Powerful trends are reducing lab budgets and payers are cutting the prices paid for medical laboratory testing. The question on everyone’s mind is “will it get better or worse in the months ahead?”
This question will be asked plenty of times to speakers at the nation’s largest gathering of clinical lab executives and pathology business leaders. On April 30-May1, the upcoming 18th Annual Executive War College on Laboratory and Pathology Management will take place in New Orleans, Louisiana. A record crowd has already registered to attend. (more…)
Apr 1, 2013 | Laboratory Hiring & Human Resources, Laboratory Management and Operations, Laboratory News, Laboratory Operations, Laboratory Pathology
As healthcare payers encourage providers to keep patients out of hospitals, health systems nationally are constructing a new generation of facilities with many fewer beds
Here’s a trend that should catch the attention of every clinical laboratory manager and pathologist working in a hospital. New hospitals are being designed and built around a new treatment paradigm: that tomorrow’s patient will get sophisticated treatment, then mostly go home to sleep in their own beds! That means fewer inpatient beds in service and shorter hospital stays. (more…)
