News
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Clinical laboratory diagnostics play key role in understanding heart health
Through innovation and advances in science, the health system has made significant progress in identifying and treating cardiovascular disease – the most significant development being the reduction in heart attacks and strokes. In fact, from 1980 to 2014, the number of Americans dying from cardiovascular disease dropped in half. While we now know more than ever before about the risk factors associated with heartContinue Reading »... -
Letter from Industry Stakeholders in Response to GAO Report on PAMA
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Leading a new generation of personalized medicine, LDTs must be key consideration in diagnostic reform
Lab developed tests (LDTs) are essential to health care delivery and the broader health system, helping pave the way for a new era of personalized medicine and making it possible to achieve national health goals like the Cancer Moonshot. These vital tests are developed and performed by individual laboratories, providing reliable, early diagnosis for many rare and increasingly complex conditions. In many cases, LDTsContinue Reading »... -
Seniors managing diabetes are counting on Congress to protect their essential lab services
For America’s seniors, diabetes is now the number one health condition leading to frequent emergency room visits, according to a recent study in the Annals of Internal Medicine. On top of that staggering statistic, the CDC reports that one in four seniors has diabetes—the highest prevalence among any age group. Most patients know that disease monitoring and management requires reliable access to routine testing.Continue Reading »... -
More than 60 Leading Health Care Organizations Call on CMS to Maintain Coverage for Medically Necessary Cancer Testing
Overly broad interpretation of national coverage determination for next generation sequencing restricts Medicare beneficiary access to vital testing and adversely impacts cancer care WASHINGTON, DC – February 1, 2019 – Leading health care companies and organizations representing patients, providers, academic medical centers, laboratories, and diagnostic manufacturers urged the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) to revise its interpretation of the National Coverage DeterminationContinue Reading »... -
ACLA Statement on GAO Analysis & Medicare Lab Payments
Latest report reflects misleading, inaccurate assumptions on Medicare lab billing & payment Washington, D.C. – Following the recent release of the Government Accountability Office’s (GAO) report on billing and reimbursement for clinical lab tests under the Medicare program, Julie Khani, President of the American Clinical Laboratory Association (ACLA), issued the following statement: “GAO’s conclusions on overbilling of laboratory services in the Medicare program are fundamentallyContinue Reading »... -
ACLA Expands Policy, Government Affairs Teams with Joan Kegerize, Liz Thomas
Kegerize to help lead ACLA’s policy work related to reimbursement & scientific affairs; Thomas to support industry’s broader advocacy and federal affairs priorities Washington, D.C. – The American Clinical Laboratory Association (ACLA) today announced two new additions to the Association’s policy and advocacy teams. Joan Kegerize, who previously served as a principal consultant for GMBI Consulting, will serve as Vice President of Reimbursement andContinue Reading »... -
For patients, PAMA reforms can’t wait
As we gaveled in a new Congress this month, protecting lab services for America’s seniors has never been more important. A recent piece in the Washington Post is the latest example of the value of essential lab services in early diagnosis and treatment of some of the most complex, serious health conditions facing patients – a critical element in our broader efforts to addressContinue Reading »... -
ACLA Announces Historian and Author Doris Kearns Goodwin as Keynote Speaker for 2019 Annual Meeting
Washington, D.C. – The American Clinical Laboratory Association (ACLA) today announced that Doris Kearns Goodwin, world-renowned presidential historian, public speaker and Pulitzer Prize-winning author, will serve as the keynote speaker for the organization’s annual meeting on March 26, 2019. Goodwin, who published her most recent book Leadership in Turbulent Times, will offer insight and perspective on the historical political landscape and how it continuesContinue Reading »... -
ACLA Files Appeal in ACLA v. Azar, Asks U.S. Court of Appeals to Address HHS’s Overreach in Data Reporting
HHS’s continued flawed implementation of PAMA threatens beneficiaries’ access to critical lab services Washington, D.C. – Today, the American Clinical Laboratory Association (ACLA) advanced its case against the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services’ (HHS) flawed and harmful implementation of the Protecting Access to Medicare Act (PAMA). ACLA’s opening brief argues that HHS has exceeded its statutory authority, circumventing Congress’ stated directive ofContinue Reading »...
