Sep 30, 2013 | Laboratory Management and Operations, Laboratory News, Laboratory Sales and Marketing, Managed Care Contracts & Payer Reimbursement
Implementation of the proposed Medicare rules is likely to lead to the financial failure of many smaller medical laboratories, thus disrupting medical care in many communities across the United States
Three newly proposed Medicare regulations announced last month are major threats to the clinical laboratory testing industry. In fact, one medical laboratory industry executive asserts that implementation of the proposed Medicare rules could result to such an extent that only two large testing companies may be left if the proposed Medicare regulations become final.
Proposed in July, these Medicare rules, “would change the practice of pathology in this country and severely affect patient care—especially for patients with cancer,” wrote Marc D. Grodman, M.D., President and Chief Executive Officer of Bio-Reference Laboratories, Inc. (NASDAQ: BRLI), of Elmwood Park, New Jersey. Grodman’s opinions were published in an op-ed article in The Hill newspaper in Washington, D.C.
The Hill is published daily when the U.S. Congress is in session. It is an influential publication and is widely read by elected officials, their staffs, lobbyists, and government officials. (more…)
Sep 16, 2013 | Coding, Billing, and Collections, Laboratory Management and Operations, Laboratory News, Laboratory Operations, Laboratory Pathology, Laboratory Sales and Marketing, Management & Operations, News From Dark Daily
Clinical laboratories and pathology groups serving Cigna beneficiaries can expect to see new requirements for genetic tests used to diagnose breast cancer, colon cancer and long QT syndrome
Effective this week, Cigna (NYSE: CI) in Bloomfield, Connecticut, is implementing a new program that requires genetic counseling and pre-authorization for certain genetic tests. This is an important development and clinical laboratory executives can expect to see other health insurers take similar steps.
Cigna wants to control costs and improve the appropriateness of ordering expensive genetic tests. It will start with tests for three conditions and may require counseling for other types of genetic tests if this program is successful. Industry observers expect other health insurers will follow Cigna’s example and also require genetic counseling for a compelling reason: all insurers recognize that more than 50% of all genetic tests may be ordered inappropriately, experts say.
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Sep 11, 2013 | Laboratory Hiring & Human Resources, Laboratory Management and Operations, Laboratory News, Laboratory Operations, Laboratory Pathology, Laboratory Sales and Marketing, Management & Operations
News stories are reporting that Walgreens is participating in ACOs now forming in New Jersey, Florida, and Texas
Retail clinics are positioning themselves to play a major role in the delivery of basic primary care services. Consumer and payer acceptance of the “convenience care” model has brought the concept to a tipping point in its potential to shift the way that some basic primary care—and medical laboratory testing—services are delivered.
Dark Daily has long predicted that retail clinics would want to expand their services beyond the original formula of a nurse practitioner who handles a basic menu of easy-to-diagnose conditions. Consumers have readily accepted this healthcare delivery model. In fact, a new title has been coined that has its own Wikipedia.com page: Convenient care clinic. (more…)
Aug 28, 2013 | Coding, Billing, and Collections, Compliance, Legal, and Malpractice, Laboratory Hiring & Human Resources, Laboratory Management and Operations, Laboratory News, Laboratory Operations, Laboratory Pathology, Laboratory Sales and Marketing, Managed Care Contracts & Payer Reimbursement, Management & Operations, News From Dark Daily
In today’s tough financial environment, medical laboratories with effective Lean and Six Sigma improvement programs are showing the best financial performance
When Dark Daily wrote about how cost-cutting is now a major clinical laboratory industry trend last Wednesday, publication of that ebriefing triggered a flow of emails and commentary from readers far and wide.
Pathologists and medical laboratory managers who read Dark Daily tell us that they are facing painful decisions about where to cut. This is particularly true when labs cut expenses by reducing staff, laying off FTEs. This approach brings much emotional pain—along with the loss of valuable technical skills and extensive organizational experience that cannot be easily replaced.
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Aug 26, 2013 | Coding, Billing, and Collections, Compliance, Legal, and Malpractice, Laboratory Hiring & Human Resources, Laboratory Management and Operations, Laboratory News, Laboratory Operations, Laboratory Pathology, Laboratory Sales and Marketing, Managed Care Contracts & Payer Reimbursement, Management & Operations, News From Dark Daily
Study Finds Most State Websites Aimed at Transparency in Healthcare Pricing Inaccurate and Basically Useless in Helping Consumers Shop for Services
With growth in high-deductible health plans, healthcare is becoming increasingly consumer-driven. But shopping for healthcare services isn’t easy due to lack of available resources that enable consumers to compare price and quality, according to a recent study published in the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA).
Recently, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) revealed the arbitrary nature of hospital prices by publishing hospital-specific costs and outcomes data for 3,000 hospitals nationwide, according to a report published by Dark Daily. This step towards full transparency is aimed at helping consumers comparative shop for hospitals based on both quality and value.
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Aug 14, 2013 | Laboratory Hiring & Human Resources, Laboratory Management and Operations, Laboratory News, Laboratory Operations, Laboratory Pathology, Laboratory Sales and Marketing, Management & Operations
Acquisition gives BRLI a core laboratory facility in Northern California, along with Hunter Laboratories’ Medi-Cal license, 29 patient service centers, and its courier network
Yesterday’s announcement that BioReference Laboratories, Inc. (Nasdaq:BRLI), of Elmwood Park, New Jersey, had acquired a majority interest in Hunter Laboratories—a clinical laboratory company in Campbell, California—caught many medical laboratory executives by surprise.
It is a strategic move that gives Bio-Reference Laboratories an important beachhead for developing its laboratory testing business in the large and growing California market. This is the first time that BRLI will own and operate a licensed clinical-laboratory facility west of the Mississippi River. (more…)
