Media Coverage

The debate over marijuana in Michigan is heating up as we get closer to the November election. Proposal 1 is one of the most talked about issues on the November ballot; it would legalize the recreational use of cannabis in the state of Michigan. If passed, the measure will allow anyone 21 and older to carry 2.5 ounces of marijuana without getting in trouble. As more and more states legalize recreational marijuana, studies show more and more people are smoking – or at least getting caught. Quest Diagnostics reports 2017 was a banner year, an all-time high for people failing drug tests.

OCT 25MORE ON BILLING AND COLLECTIONSTechnology key to curbing rate of claims denials for hospitals, health systems Some providers see nine percent of their claims denied, and with each costing as much as $118, better processes can help realize cost savings.[CR-LF]Jeff Lagasse, Associate Editor[CR-LF][CR-LF]Hospitals and health systems have a denied claims problem. A 2017 analysis by Change Healthcare found that out of roughly $3 trillion in medical claims submitted by U.S. hospitals in the prior year, almost 9 percent of those charges were initially denied. Such a high rate of denials creates challenges for maximizing revenue, so it's important to have the right tools and processes in place. Enter technology, which can play a key role in curbing the denials issue. Tom Romeo, general manager of healthcare IT at Quest Diagnostics, advocates for technology that can do eligibility checking. It's also important for any approach, whether technological or process-focused, to curb duplicate billing, as well as improper CPT codes.

Quest Diagnostics, the world's leading provider of diagnostic information services, and Marin General Hospital, a not-for-profit, full-service hospital, have entered into a definitive agreement for Quest to acquire the outreach laboratory services operations of Marin General Hospital. The transaction will enhance the delivery of innovative, high-value diagnostic information services to communities in Marin County, Calif. Physicians and patients will benefit from an enhanced test menu, which includes advanced diagnostic services, and an expanded network of conveniently located patient service centers. "The hospital has worked with Quest for years, and they are known for quality, innovation and scale. We feel they will be better able to maintain the standards our community wants and deserves at a reasonable cost. We will collaborate to ensure a smooth transition," said Lee Domanico, Chief Executive Officer, Marin General Hospital & Marin Healthcare District at Marin General Hospital.

Quest Diagnostics, the world's leading provider of diagnostic information services, announced today jointly with other leading diagnostic services providers the formation and launch of the Global Diagnostics Network (GDN). The GDN is a strategic working group of diagnostic laboratories, each committed to unleashing and sharing local innovation to increase global access to diagnostic science, information, and services - ultimately generating enhanced diagnostic insights to improve the delivery of global healthcare. Collectively, this worldwide community of healthcare leaders has a presence in countries with more than half of the world's population across all continents.

Quest Diagnostics is partnering with Mood Media to introduce "Quest TV," a curated, video programming network that is pre-recorded, with short-form and family-friendly content. The rollout includes more than 2,200 Quest Diagnostics waiting room lobbies in patient service centers across the U.S. "Live TV means potential for inappropriate programming, unsettling news segments or advertisements, and more," says Chris Grant, executive director of patient services, Quest Diagnostics. "Ultimately, this means we can feel confident in the type of experience and ambiance we’re setting for our waiting patients."

True innovators go to great lengths to change the world around them, says Jake Orville, general manager at Cleveland HeartLab, a CardioMetabolic and Endo franchise at Quest Diagnostics. “You can be known as innovative, but to be disruptive in your innovation, you have to do more than move the needle,” Orville says. “To get recognized as a leader and to gain momentum in your innovation, you have to have exponential growth and make a big impact.” Orville and his team took aim at heart disease, the nation’s leading killer of both men and women. In his view, nothing else comes close to it both in terms of clinical need and the opportunity to make a profound impact — the inflammation testing that CHL has developed could eliminate billions in health care costs.

Quest Diagnostics Inc. on Tuesday reported third-quarter earnings of $213 million. On a per-share basis, the Secaucus, New Jersey-based company said it had net income of $1.53. Earnings, adjusted for one-time gains and costs, were $1.68 per share. The results met Wall Street expectations. The average estimate of 10 analysts surveyed by Zacks Investment Research was also for earnings of $1.68 per share. The medical laboratory operator posted revenue of $1.89 billion in the period, which fell short of Street forecasts. Eight analysts surveyed by Zacks expected $1.95 billion.

Quest Diagnostics, the world's leading provider of diagnostic information services, will host an Investor Day for institutional investors and financial analysts in New York City on Thursday, November 29, 2018 at The InterContinental New York Times Square Hotel at 300 W. 44th St.

Quest Diagnostics today reported 2 percent year-over-year revenue growth for the third quarter missing analyst expectations. Revenue was $1.89 billion for the three- month period ended Sept. 30, 2018, up from $1.86 billion in the third quarter last year. The consensus Wall Street estimate was $1.95 billion. Ross Muken, analyst with investment bank Evercore ISI called the quarter "mediocre to modestly disappointing," in a note to investors. He cited the missed revenues, and the continuation of headwinds that the company faced last quarter as some of the reasons for his modest disappointment.

The US interferon-gamma release assay (IGRA) tuberculosis testing market has been largely dominated by one player, but Quest Diagnostics' acquisition of the US operations of a smaller contender has potential to increase competition in the rapidly growing market, some experts say. The leading IGRA tuberculosis test, Qiagen's QuantiFERON-TB had global sales of $185 million in 2017, about half of which was made up of US sales, according to a spokesman. Quest's plans to acquire the US operations of Oxford Immunotec, maker of the competing T Spot.TB IGRA tuberculosis test, could add scale and efficiency to a less widely known competitor in a rapidly growing market, financial analysts and tuberculosis experts say. The $170 million deal, in which Quest will also acquire US operations of Oxford Immunotec's Accutix tick-borne disease test, is expected to close by year end.

In a recent article, we discussed secondhand cannabis smoke and why a person has very little chance to generate a positive hair test from it. A few folks wrote to us explaining they had indeed failed a hair test thanks to the secondhand smoke around them and not what they consumed. We got enough responses that we felt the need to delve deeper into the issue around secondhand smoke and hair follicle tests. In 2015, the Cannabist spoke with Quest Diagnostics Employer Solutions Director of Science and Technology, Dr. Barry Sample, about why secondhand smoke should not trigger a positive test. Dr. Sample explained that, “Hair testing detects a pattern of repetitive use and does not detect recent or single (first time) use. Published, peer-reviewed studies to date have not demonstrated the reporting of a hair specimen as positive for marijuana use due to ‘passive’ or ‘incidental’ exposure.” In the case of a failed hair test, subjects can take a second follow-up test. In this case, hair samples are usually washed to remove any secondhand contaminants from the test.

Quest Diagnostics used an 18-month leadership development program called LeadingQuest Academy to overhaul its leadership culture and drive new growth. The academy focused on experiential learning through an in-residence program, action learning projects, cross-functional team-building and pre- and post-assessments.

In 2015 Arizona passed a law that allowed people to obtain any test offered by a licensed clinical laboratory without a health care provider’s request or authorization. The benefits of the bill largely fell by the wayside when the primary company that supported the bill was found to be lying about their testing process. However, while all eyes were on the downfall of Theranos, Sonora Quest Laboratories started My Lab ReQuest, their own direct-to-consumer blood testing. “Theranos was already in that space. LabCorp had announced, nationally, that they were going to get into the direct-to-consumer space. So, it was an internal business decision on our part to expand direct-to-consumer,” David Dexter, CEO of SQL, said. “I will tell you that I was somewhat of a skeptic that we were truly entering a direct-to-consumer phase in health care, but I gave way completely because once we completely delivered the direct-to-consumer product, within 90 days of rolling it out, the response was much stronger than I had anticipated.”

Researchers at Dana-Farber Cancer Institute are seeking participants in a new study, funded as part of the Stand Up To Cancer Multiple Myeloma Dream Team, to identify people with conditions that are precursors of multiple myeloma and track their health over time. The study, dubbed PROMISE, will help scientists track the molecular changes that occur as precursor conditions progress to myeloma. This information will be critical in the development of drugs that prevent the disease from advancing and improve patients’ survival. Initial participation in the trial is online or by mail. Local travel for blood draw is required. Testing will be performed at each participant’s local Quest Diagnostics laboratory. To sign up for the study, please visit www.promisestudy.org. Additional funding is provided by grants from the Multiple Myeloma Research Foundation, the Multiple Myeloma Research Consortium, Celgene, Leukemia and Lymphoma Society and the National Institutes of Health. The Promise study has partnered with Quest Diagnostics, as the preferred provider for laboratory testing.

Physicians must be allowed to prescribe opioids, but we need regulations that support drug testing of patients before and during such therapy. Throughout my career, I have closely studied prescription drug use and misuse, particularly relating to opioids. As director, medical science liaison, and medical affairs at the large New Jersey-based company, Quest Diagnostics, the nature of our current opioid epidemic is particularly disturbing, and it’s hitting much too close to home.

Quest Diagnostics, the world's leading provider of diagnostic information services, announced today that it will present results of four studies at the 2018 American Society of Human Genetics Meeting (ASHG), October 16 – 20, 2018 in San Diego (Quest Diagnostics booth 1514). These studies by Quest Diagnostics researchers evaluate a broad range of laboratory technologies and best practices for aiding in genomic sequencing of data for the diagnosis of patients with a broad range of genetic diseases and disorders. These include next generation sequencing (NGS) to detect alpha-thalassemia common deletions, which can affect the body's production of hemoglobin, causing anemia and other blood disorders. Other research describes best practices for identifying clinically relevant gene variants from sequenced genetic data.

At the start of 2018, I put my health (both mental and physical) as a top priority. I have been seeing the results slowly but surely! Exercising daily has made the biggest impact, along with eating with a more healthy intention. If you like to take charge of your own health, I would suggest starting out with daily walks and incorporating a salad into your every day routine. Those are two super-easy ways to improve your general health! I’ve also added several vitamins and supplements to improve different aspects of my health. I recently decided to check in to see if these supplements have impacted my health. Through Health Testing Centers, I purchased an Expanded Vitamin Panel to see what vitamins I may be showing as low or high. I also purchased an Anemia test to see if I may be anemic. With just a few clicks, I added the two lab tests to my cart, choosing which lab I wanted to go to. I chose Quest Diagnostics because there is a location just a short distance from me. There were so many location choices it will be easy to find a lab near you. You can pay with a credit card or even use PayPal. I love the convenience aspect!

Quest Diagnostics, the world's leading provider of diagnostic information services, today announced that its subsidiary, Summit Health Inc., has completed the previously disclosed acquisition of the assets of Hooper Holmes, Inc. d/b/a Provant Health, a provider of employer health and wellness services focused on whole person wellness and care cost management.

Quest Diagnostics announced today the formation of the Global Diagnostics Network (GDN), a partnership with other large labs across the globe for the sharing of diagnostic innovation, information, and services. The initial focus of the new partnership will include collaboration on companion diagnostics, and the creation of an emerging pathogen preparedness network to expedite infectious disease research and response. Additional initiatives are expected to be rolled out based on regional and global priorities. Quest's partners in the new network include Al Borg Medical Laboratories, founded in Saudi Arabia, with labs across the Middle East and Africa; Dasa, based in Brazil; GC Labs, based in South Korea; KingMed Diagnostics, based in Hong Kong with labs across South East Asia; Primary Health Care, based in Australia; and SynLab, based in Germany with labs across Europe and on four continents.

Soot particles from burning fossil fuels increases the risk of mouth cancer, warns new research. The first study of its kind discovered that high levels of fine particulate matter from engines, power stations and factories, and to a lesser extent, ozone, may be key. The findings, published online by the Journal of Investigative Medicine, show that the number of new cases, and deaths from, mouth cancer is increasing in many parts of the world.Study author Dr Michael McPhaul, of Quest Diagnostics in the US said: “The smaller diameter, but larger surface area, of PM2.5 means that it can be relatively easily absorbed while at the same time potentially wreaking greater havoc on the body.”

Quest Diagnostics the world's leading provider of diagnostic information services, announced today that it received the Gold Award in the 2018 Best Employers for Healthy Lifestyles awards from the National Business Group on Health (NBGH). The awards recognized 49 employers that have an exceptional commitment to improving the lives of their employees through their overall well-being, productivity and quality of life. The Gold Award is presented to member companies that have a strong commitment to holistic well-being and related metrics.

Quest Diagnostics says it is taking over lab services that had been provided by Hurley Medical Center at three locations. Quest announced the new arrangement, the financial terms of which were not disclosed, in a news release this week. Hurley spokeswoman Laura Jasso described Quest as Hurley's "transition partner in lab services" after having made the decision to close some sites where it drew blood "throughout the community."

The number of workers testing positive for drugs they’re not supposed to have is declining in South Carolina, according to a new report from the laboratory Quest Diagnostics. Still, a consistently high rate of positive drug tests has exacerbated the state’s labor shortage.