Media Coverage

Data released by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services shows massive boosts in the use of telehealth during the COVID-19 pandemic. Our digital health company, Pack Health, also saw a surge in the use of our telehealth options over the last two years, including one-to-one health coaching.

The US Department of Health and Human Services announced on Wednesday that it has authorized the Food and Drug Administration to issue emergency use authorizations for monkeypox tests. The agency has issued the first EUA for a monkeypox test to Quest Diagnostics, the FDA said in a separate announcement.

Quest Diagnostics announced August 17th the launch of a new obstetrics laboratory test panel which will help physicians screen all eligible pregnant people easily and reliably for hepatitis C (HCV) along with tests typically ordered during early pregnancy.

Prior to the COVID-19 pandemic, we at Quest Diagnostics had begun the process of moving lab operations in our Northeast region to a new, state-of-the-art facility in Clifton, New Jersey. In January 2021, we started processing samples (both COVID-19 related and others) in the new facility — one of the largest medical laboratories globally.

Responding is Barry Sample, senior science consultant, Quest Diagnostics, Seneca, SC.

Delta-9 THC – the psychoactive compound that gives marijuana users a high – is a real risk to workplace safety and isn’t the benign, harmless substance it may be believed to be by many Americans.

The idea of patient-centric, personalized, and at-home medicine is no longer a theory, let alone a wild idea whipped up by the imagination of Hanna-Barbera cartoonists from 60 years ago. It’s precisely the type of healthcare that Jay G. Wohlgemuth, MD. senior vice president, R&D, medical and chief medical officer at Quest Diagnostics, thinks is just at our fingertips. In his eyes, a healthcare system with a seamless, highly engaging, and online medical experience around preventative and chronic care is not out of reach.

Vitamin D is a vital nutrient that helps our body absorb calcium and phosphorus, which are essential in building strong bones. In addition, Harvard Health states, "Laboratory studies show that vitamin D can reduce cancer cell growth, help control infections and reduce inflammation. Getting enough vitamin D can be a challenge for some because few foods naturally contain the nutrient and working from home or an office can limit one's time to go outside and grab some sunshine, which is another way to get vitamin D. Supplements are another option and Eat This, Not That! Health spoke with Dr. Jeffrey Dlott, Senior Medical Director of QuestDirect who explained what to know about vitamin D before taking it.

Although hepatitis C screening rates for pregnant people have increased since the advent of new guidelines recommending universal screening during each pregnancy, less than half received the recommended tests in early 2021, according to study results published in Obstetrics and Gynecology. People insured through Medicaid were even less likely to be screened. “Our Health Trends study underscores the power of medical guidelines to favorably influence screening rates for diseases such as hepatitis C,” Harvey Kaufman, MD, senior medical director for Quest Diagnostics in Secaucus, New Jersey, said in a press release. “Yet it also reveals that gaps in guideline-based care are prevalent and highlights the urgent need to close them in underserved populations."

Quest Diagnostics is launching a multi-faceted initiative to provide better healthcare among America’s large and growing Hispanic community. The new initiative, “Es Tu Poder,” is being launched in San Antonio, Houston, Austin, Rio Grande Valley, and other communities with large Hispanic populations in the Southwest, is designed to empower better health for Hispanics. The initiative includes the launch of a new microsite, Es Tu Poder, reminding patients that good health is within their power.

In a Healio video exclusive, Harvey Kaufman, MD, senior medical director at Quest Diagnostics, highlighted the need for concurrent hepatitis B and latent tuberculosis testing to mitigate the risk for drug-induced liver injury.

Even as the COVID-19 pandemic has taken center stage during the past two years, sexually transmitted diseases have also run rampant. To stem the rise in cases, they said a greater emphasis need to be placed on testing. Damian Alagia, senior medical director for advanced diagnostics and women's health at Quest Diagnostics, noted that there are many hurdles to getting a home test to commercialization, namely regulatory approval and payment models with insurers.

Lyme disease is an infectious disease spread by the bite of infected blacklegged ticks (also known as deer ticks) that carry the bacteria Borrelia burgdorferi, explains Harvey Kaufman, M.D., senior medical director of Medical Informatics at Quest Diagnostics. “It’s the most commonly occurring vector-borne disease in the United States,” he says.

Overall positivity rates in urine drug tests in the transportation/warehousing industry increased 4.4% in 2020 versus 5.5% in 2021 – a relative 25% increase year over year – according to data compiled by medical lab Quest Diagnostics. Almost 130,000 truck drivers have found themselves in the Drug and Alcohol Clearinghouse as of June 1. Nearly 97,000 are still in prohibited status, and 72,000 of those haven’t even started the return to duty process.

Rite Aid is collaborating with Quest Diagnostics to provide access to COVID molecular testing to help its customers detect and prevent the spread of the virus. Quest is a provider of diagnostic information services and COVID testing. The company has performed more than 69 million COVID-19 molecular tests since March 2020.

Dr. Michael Racke is the Medical Director at Quest Advanced Neurology, which is extending the options for neurologic diagnoses by looking for biomarkers in blood tests. Michael explains, "And now, we're very much involved in developing plasma-based biomarkers to help diagnose Alzheimer's disease. Alzheimer's disease was a disorder that was initially diagnosed pathologically. You had to find the plaque and tangles in the brain at autopsy.

Quest Diagnostics said Wednesday that its proprietary monkeypox virus test is now available across the U.S., and within a month, it will be able to process samples using the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s orthopoxvirus test.

Alzheimer’s Disease prevention and identification may become more achievable with emerging solutions, according to Michael Racke, MD, Medical Director of Neurology at Quest Diagnostics. On a recent Healthcare Strategies episode, Racke shared about a new test called AD Detect which uses a blood sample to identify the presence of Alzheimer’s Disease early in the disease’s progress.

The following is a guest article by Tom Romeo, General Manager of Healthcare IT at Quest Diagnostics. With a consistent approach, healthcare professionals can increase efficiency, timeliness and legibility, and better consistency and completeness of patient documentation. Ultimately, these benefits can also improve patient care and quality of service. Specifically, Intelligent Data Capture (IDC) is a tool that can help save time and money – and therefore improve care – by innovatively processing, classifying, extracting, validating and routing materials.

Quest Diagnostics said Thursday that it is participating in the CDC's Increasing Community Access to Testing (ICATT) for COVID-19 program. Through the program, Quest will provide $0 out-of-pocket COVID-19 testing to qualifying uninsured individuals at roughly 1,200 of the company's 2,100 patient service centers.

As healthcare workers continue to leave the industry at startling rates, health systems must find more effective ways to attract and retain employees. In a June Becker's Hospital Review webinar sponsored by Quest Diagnostics, three healthcare executives discussed current workforce challenges, creative attraction and retention strategies and the results that have been achieved. And how intentional initiatives that focus on helping employees feel like they belong, have a career advancement path, and focus on wellness have also been proven to be effective.

Following updated hepatitis C virus screening recommendations issued in 2020, HCV screening in pregnancy accelerated across the country, according to a retrospective cohort study published in Obstetrics & Gynecology. “We wanted to see whether or not the revised guidelines — which came out during the COVID-19 pandemic — had an impact in changing physician [HCV screening] ordering patterns,” Harvey W. Kaufman, MD, MBA, FCAP, a senior medical director at Quest Diagnostics in Secaucus, New Jersey, told Healio.

Quest Diagnostics has been recognized by the American Heart Association to receive their 2022 Award for Meritorious Achievement for our commitment to health care equity. Quest is removing barriers to health care for people in under-served communities and encouraging diversity in health care professionals through sponsorship of the AHA’s Historically Black Colleges and Universities Scholars Program and the Hispanic Serving Institutions Scholars Program.

There has been substantial progress in the proportion of pregnant persons screened for hepatitis C virus, but the testing rates are still low, according to an article published in Obstetrics & Gynecology. Harvey W. Kaufman, M.D., from Quest Diagnostics in Secaucus, New Jersey, and colleagues examined the effect of the 2020 U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and U.S. Preventive Services Task Force recommendations on HCV screening among pregnant persons.

While there have been opportunities to apply digital pathology technologies for some time for secondary consultations, training and educational settings, and to review cases involving specialty stains, the ability to use digital pathology for a primary read is fairly new,” noted Kristie Dolan, vice president and general manager of oncology at Quest Diagnostics.

A joint study conducted by Quest Diagnostics and the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has found that while the rate of hepatitis C (HCV) antibody screening increased 145% in pregnant people during the decade-long study period ending in June 2021, less than half of all pregnant people were screened in early 2021.