Congress Reconsiders Workforce Legislation
Congress is once again considering legislation to address workforce training and employment as a means of putting Americans back to work. Workforce legislation has typically been addressed through the Workforce Investment Act (WIA). Originally enacted in 1998, WIA serves as the preeminent federal employment service and job training law. Read more

ASCP is urging the medical laboratory community in Tennessee to contact their state elected officials about legislation that could compromise patient care and undermine the quality of laboratory medicine and the state’s laboratory personnel licensure requirements. Read more

Ready … Set … Sequester …
As almost everyone knows by now, the Sequester—the $85 billion in across-the-board automatic spending cuts in federal spending—went into effect on March 1. These cuts will affect every sector of the economy, and health care is no exception. While many elected officials in Washington, D.C., have stated publicly they do not support the cuts, Congress does not appear to be poised to reverse these cuts at this time. Many U.S. House Republicans have indicated they are reluctant to reverse the cuts, even if they impose harsh cuts in defense spending. Read more

ASCP Urges Changes to Meaningful Use Rules
On Jan. 14, 2013, ASCP wrote the National Coordinator for Health Information Technology, Farzad Mostashari, MD, ScM, restating the Society’s concerns about the inability of pathologists to meet the Meaningful Use Requirements. ASCP’s letter, sent in response to a proposal outlining draft goals and measures for Stage 3 of the Electronic Health Records’ Meaningful Use Requirements, asserted that the program’s “‘one-size-fits-all’ approach … is neither appropriate nor realistic.” Read more