Media Coverage

Many of us remember the case of the missing giant inflatable colon. It was a mystery that kept Kansas City residents on the edge of their seats for a dozen days. With the #StolenColon hashtag going viral, many jokes and demands for answers were made all across social media. Now, with Friday marking the start of Colon Cancer Awareness Month, the stolon colon is back to work.

Quest Diagnostics said today it has entered a partnership agreement with Regional Medical Center of Orangeburg, South Carolina.[CR-LF][CR-LF]Under the agreement, Quest will provide RMC with full laboratory management services, including management, equipment, reference testing, supplies, and procurement services.

The cost of healthcare in the U.S. is skyrocketing and employers and lawmakers must play a larger role to reduce the burden on Americans. So far, they aren’t doing enough, experts say. “Vitamin D screenings were in a typical bundle of laboratory services that are already provided,” she said. “[It’s] talking directly to LabCorp and Quest Diagnostics, saying ‘take this off your bundle, it’s no longer needed.’”

Marijuana may be legal now in Michigan, but many employees are likely to face strict workplace policies and still run the risk of being fired. That's partly because the federal government still considers marijuana to be a controlled substance. But whether they do business with Washington, employers face a legal landscape of complicated interactions with their workers. According to the 2017 annual report from Quest Diagnostics, two percent of the drug tests they analyzed nationally tested positive for marijuana.

While cities like New York have cracked down on CBD in food and drinks, that is not case in Kansas City. But how much of it people consume is important and could have an impact on whether or not they land their next job. However, lab-testing company, Quest Diagnostics, wrote in a blog post earlier this month:[CR-LF][CR-LF]"If the CBD product contains THC at a sufficiently high concentration, it is possible, depending on usage patterns, that the use of these products could cause a positive urine drug test result"

Transforming raw data into actionable information is crucial to the financial future of provider organizations, especially as pressure builds on providers to align their care delivery approach with value-based care and consumerism in healthcare. However, many providers lack the time and money to implement this critical function. Fortunately, the right technology can assist providers in getting the most out of their data while freeing up resources better used for patient care. A 2018 Quest Diagnostics survey of physicians and health plan executives found that providers do not have access to the tools they need to succeed under value-based arrangements. Providers still need EHRs, clinical decision support, data analytics, and EHR plug-ins or modules, as well as access to comprehensive patient data.

The American Diabetes Association (the Association) recently released a new economic report that details the fiscal impact of diabetes in the United States – and the results should alarm employers, benefit managers, and HR executives. According to the Association, about 30.3 million people in the U.S. are living with diabetes. In 2017, the total estimated costs associated with diagnosed diabetes were a staggering $327 billion, an increase of 26 percent compared to 2012. About one-third of this cost -- $109 billion -- is due to medical costs to care for patients with diabetes. Another $30 billion is due to indirect costs in the employed population, including increased absenteeism and reduced productivity.

A growing number of employers are adopting workplace wellness programs to improve employee health and subsequently lower their health insurance spend. As they do, benefit managers are tasked with vetting options that will deliver meaningful health and financial results for their companies.A study published in the peer-reviewed journal PLoS ONE, for instance, found that one in three first-time participants in a company-sponsored, lab-based wellness program by Quest Diagnostics were not aware they were at risk for a serious medical condition, such as diabetes or heart disease, according to biometric screening results.

Quest Diagnostics announced today that it will provide full laboratory management services for Georgia-based Houston Medical Center and Perry Hospital. Under the agreement, Quest will provide management expertise, lab equipment, supplies, and procurement processes to the two hospitals. It will also perform reference testing to them. Other terms of the deal were not disclosed.

Quest Diagnostics, the world`s leading provider of diagnostic information services, today announced that its Board of Directors has elected Denise M. Morrison to serve as a director, effective February 18, 2019. Including Ms. Morrison, the company`s Board has 11 members.