July ePolicy 2022

Publication Date: Jul 11, 2022

ASCP Wage Data Adopted by CMS in Physician Fee Schedule
In a huge win for ASCP members, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services is using data from ASCP’s 2019 Wage Survey to update labor costs for lab personnel. Read more.

Laboratory Professionals Need Access to More Loan Forgiveness Options
Loan forgiveness options for laboratory professionals are woefully insufficient. As part of ASCP’s new Workforce Initiative, the Society is researching federal and state loan forgiveness opportunities and is supporting several bills that have been introduced in Congress. Read more.

Legislation to Reform Medicare Lab Fees Introduced
ASCP is reviewing legislation introduced in both the U.S. Senate and House of Representatives to reform the way Medicare pays for clinical laboratory services. Read more.

More Than 75 Health Care Organizations Release Joint Statement in Opposition to Legislative Interference
ASCP has joined with more than 75 major organizations of healthcare professionals to state their opposition to all legislative interference in the patient–clinician relationship. “The wave of abortion bans going into effect in states across the country will harm patients, impair the integrity of the medical profession, and have a devastating and unquantifiable impact on the patients and clinicians it affects,” according to the joint statement. Read more.

Get Ready for the ASCLS Legislative Symposium
ASCP strongly encourages interested laboratory professionals to attend the American Society for Clinical Laboratory Science’s (ASCLS) Legislative Symposium, Sept. 26-27 in Alexandria, VA. The event helps advance public policy issues of concern to laboratory professionals. Read more.

CDC Updates Laboratory Community on Monkeypox Lab Procedures, Specimen Collection
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has released several updates for Monkeypox virus on its Laboratory Procedures and Preparation and Collection of Specimens web pages to provide biosafety guidance for laboratory personnel. Read more.

VALID Act Approved by Senate HELP Committee
The Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions Committee (HELP) has approved legislation that includes the Verifying Accurate Leading-edge IVCT Development (VALID) Act. The VALID Act would provide the Food and Drug Administration with authority over laboratory developed tests and would significantly raise the regulatory requirements and approval fees associated with their review by the Agency. Read more.

Biden Signs Gun Violence Protection Act
President Joe Biden has signed into law bipartisan legislation designed to prevent dangerous individuals from possessing firearms. The measure provides funds to support state red-flag laws and investments in mental health initiatives. In addition, funding sought by ASCP for research into gun violence prevention has been added to legislation approved by the House Appropriations Committee. Read more.

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