May 28, 2013 | Coding, Billing, and Collections, Laboratory News, Managed Care Contracts & Payer Reimbursement, Management & Operations
Giving physicians Information on the price of medical laboratory tests at the time of order decreased overall use of such tests by about 9%, researchers said.
Physicians order fewer clinical laboratory tests when they know how much they cost, according to a recent study at the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine.Those findings are good news for hospital-based pathologists who must often respond to physicians who order expensive esoteric tests that are inappropriate for the patient’s condition or lack documentation as to clinical utility.
The study results show another dimension to the power of transparent pricing in healthcare because it demonstrates that physicians are willing to take cost into consideration when deciding what clinical laboratory tests they should order. Some experts believe that publishing price information on the costs of care empowers consumers to shop for the best price, thus helping to reduce the overall cost of healthcare.
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Feb 11, 2013 | Compliance, Legal, and Malpractice, Laboratory Management and Operations, Laboratory News, Laboratory Operations, Laboratory Pathology, Management & Operations
There will be more focused lab testing and public reporting of sepsis results as New York State addresses growing problem following death of 12-year-old boy.
New York State will implement tougher standards for the diagnosis and treatment of sepsis in hospitals. One consequence is expected to be more medical laboratory testing for patients suspected of having sepsis.
It may also mean that clinical laboratory test results will get increased scrutiny by physicians who, under the new requirements, must become faster at making an accurate diagnosis of sepsis. These developments were announced by New York Governor Andrew M. Cuomo in his State of the State message on January 9. (more…)
Nov 28, 2012 | Coding, Billing, and Collections, Compliance, Legal, and Malpractice, Laboratory Management and Operations, Laboratory News, Laboratory Operations, Uncategorized
Unexpected opposition to EHR incentive program should be watched by pathologists and clinical laboratory managers
Questions about the value of the federal government’s program to encourage provider adoption of electronic health record (EHR) systems were raised by Republican leaders in both houses of Congress just weeks before the election on November 6.
Because clinical laboratories and pathology groups have a big stake in interfacing their laboratory information systems to physicians’ EHRs, this new development bears watching.
In October, GOP Senators and House Republicans joined together and issued a call for an immediate halt to distribution of incentive payments to providers for implementing electronic health record (EHR) systems. This program is now in its second full year of implementation. (more…)
Jul 27, 2012 | Digital Pathology, Instruments & Equipment, Laboratory Instruments & Laboratory Equipment, Laboratory Management and Operations, Laboratory News, Laboratory Operations, Laboratory Pathology
Strategic collaboration promises leap forward in personalized medicine that could be game-changing for medical laboratories
One early effort to apply next generation gene sequencing to cancer diagnostics and therapeutics is a collaboration that involves Greenville Hospital System University Medical Center (GHS) in Greenville, South Carolina, and Lab21, Inc., a British company. GHS wants to use next gene sequencing as an integral part of the evaluation of every cancer patient cared for in the GHS system.
The partnership between GHS and Lab21 provides evidence for pathologists and clinical laboratories that first mover hospitals and health systems are now taking steps to incorporate next generation gene sequencing (NGS) into their cancer care protocols. Forward-looking pathology groups are already taking steps to expand their capabilities to perform and interpret genetic tests. (more…)
Jun 11, 2012 | Compliance, Legal, and Malpractice, Digital Pathology, Instruments & Equipment, Laboratory Hiring & Human Resources, Laboratory Pathology
Pathology profession’s leading experts in lab informatics predict plenty of disruption as hospitals work to integrate their informatics systems
DATELINE—PITTSBURGH, PENNSYLVANIA: Last Friday, what I will call the All-Stars of pathology informatics and clinical laboratory information systems (LIS) came together for a one-day Strategy Summit. Disruptive forces are loose within the laboratory informatics space and participants were eager to understand these trends and develop effective responses to keep medical laboratory testing at the forefront of clinical care.
Almost 100 pathologists, laboratory informatics vendors, LIS consultants, and hospital CIOs participated. Your Dark Daily editor was here as a careful listener. The Strategy Summit was organized by the Association for Pathology Informatics (API). API President Mark Tuthill, M.D., was chair of the program. Tuthill is also Division Head, Pathology Informatics, at Henry Ford Health System in Detroit, Michigan. (more…)
