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erspective
on Today’s Laboratory Testing Industry
our industry perspective. So do the managed
care plans and other payers for laboratory ser-
vices. And we can’t forget physicians and the
patient. The other major sectors of the health
care industry have traditionally been more vocal
in their advocacy. So it’s time for us to talk about
lab testing in ways that focus on the tangible
value we bring to making the delivery of health
care more efficient. I’m pleased that our industry
is making concerted progress towards that goal.
Q: What are the biggest challenges?
A: Innovation is critical to providing better health
care, and we need to continue to offer medically
important new tests. A March 2006 study*
examining the impact of medical goods and
services on the health of Americans during
1990 – 2003 strongly suggests that new clinical
laboratory tests have improved the quality
of information physicians and patients have
about medical conditions. More appropriate
and effective treatment of those conditions
was therefore possible. The study also found
that new laboratory procedures introduced
during 1990 –1998 were highly cost-effective,
saving approximately 1.13 million life-years
in 1998. This is truly compelling information
which underscores the impressive value of
laboratory testing.
We also need to fight unfair and unwise
reimbursement policies. Time after time we
have seen Congress freeze the clinical labo-
ratory fee schedule whenever it needs to
address health care spending. When those
proposals arise, we have to effectively com-
municate the value that laboratory services
provide, both toward the goal of reduc-
ing spending on health care services and
achieving better patient outcomes. At the
same time, we need a process to obtain fair
reimbursement for new technology. In labo-
ratory testing, the importance of genomics
is growing every day and exponentially
improving patient care. We must do better
at conveying to policymakers the value of
this emerging technology and that these
technological advances are literally improv-
ing countless lives.
* Lichtenberg, Frank R., “The Impact of New Laboratory
Procedures and Other Medical Innovations on the Health
of Americans, 1990-2003: Evidence from Longitudinal,
Disease-Level Data” (March 2006).
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Laboratory Corporation of America® Holdings 2006 15