Media Coverage

Prescription data alone underestimated how many patients combined opioids and benzodiazepines, an analysis of Quest Diagnostics drug test data indicated.[CR-LF]Among a selected sample of patients whose drug test indicated concurrent benzodiazepine and opioid use, 64% had at least one benzodiazepine or opioid that was not prescribed, according to Quest researcher Leland McClure, PhD, and colleagues in a poster presentation at the 2018 PAINWeek conference.

Gov. Phil Murphy’s administration announced Thursday that health care premiums for some school and local government employees will fall more than two percent next year.[CR-LF][CR-LF]Before the announcement, the School Employees’ Health Benefits Commission and the State Health Benefits Commission — boards comprised of management and labor members — approved health care and prescription premium rates for 2020.[CR-LF][CR-LF]Jennifer Sciortino, a spokeswoman for the Treasury Department, said prescription drug and health benefit administrators are receiving commissions rather than a flat fee for negotiating prices with out-of-network providers. The state was able to remove thousands of people from its rolls after a dependent eligibility audit, and plans to move Quest Diagnostics in network should lower bills for lab work.

Population aging will lead to a rise in the prevalence of chronic health conditions, including diabetes, hypertension, and dementia (1). The prevalence of Alzheimer's disease (AD), the primary cause of dementia, is expected to reach 115.4 million worldwide by 2050 (2). Both AD and undiagnosed anemia are common conditions in nursing homes, with prevalences of around 45% (3). In fact, anemia affects 33% of the world's population, and about half the cases are due to iron deficiency (4). [CR-LF][CR-LF]Red cell distribution width, anemia, and other iron status measures[CR-LF]All laboratory tests selected for this study were done at Quest Diagnostics, Chantilly, VA, following a fasting blood draw, after which participants were offered breakfast.

Optimal health care requires humanism—not just scientific excellence, but also compassion and collaboration. This truth is understood intuitively by patients, their family members, and health care professionals. In 2017, in recognition of the importance of collectively strengthening humanism more broadly across the health care ecosystem, we created the Gold Corporate Council. Five corporations stepped forward to become founding members: BD (Becton, Dickinson and Company), Henry Schein, Inc., IBM Watson Health, Medtronic, and Quest Diagnostics.

Forbes released its annual list of the country's most innovative leaders, comprising 100 founders and CEOs known for encouraging creative and highly successful innovation at their organizations.[CR-LF][CR-LF]To compile the list, leaders from top U.S. companies were ranked based on their media reputation for innovation, social connections and capital related to innovation, track record of market value creation and investor expectations of future growth and innovation. Exemplifying these qualities are Amazon's Jeff Bezos and Tesla's Elon Musk, who tied for first place.[CR-LF][CR-LF]83. Stephen Rusckowski, Quest Diagnostics

By now, the venture world is wary of blood testing startups offering health data from just a few drops of blood. However, Baze, a Swiss-based personal nutrition startup providing blood tests you can do in the convenience of your own home, collects just a smidgen of your sanguine fluid through an MIT manufactured device, which, according to the company, is in accordance with FDA regulations.[CR-LF][CR-LF]The idea is to find out (via your blood sample) which vitamins you’re missing out on and are keeping you from living your best life. That seems to resonate with folks who don’t want to go into the doctor’s office and separately head to their nearest lab for testing.The price is also nice, compared to going to a Quest Diagnostics or LabCorp, which can vary depending on which vitamins you need to test for individually.

Quest Diagnostics Incorporated (DGX), the world's leading provider of diagnostic information services, announced that it is scheduled to speak at the Morgan Stanley Global Healthcare Conference in New York. Stephen Rusckowski, Chairman, President and CEO will discuss the company's vision, goals and two-point strategy to accelerate growth and drive operational excellence. The presentation is scheduled for Monday, September 9, 2019 at 11:40 a.m. Eastern Time.

Clinical laboratories and health insurers also are collaborating on blockchain projects. A recent intelligence briefing from The Dark Report, the sister publication of Dark Daily, describes collaborations between multiple health insurers and Quest Diagnostics to improve their provider directories using blockchain. (See, “Four Insurers, Quest Developing Blockchain,” July 1, 2019.)

Cannabis has long been heralded for its calming properties. But lately it’s having quite the opposite effect on HR professionals, as they navigate the myriad state laws and court cases affecting the controversial substance to create drug-testing policies and procedures.[CR-LF][CR-LF]Possession or use of marijuana remains illegal under federal law. But state laws are changing at a dizzying speed, including some that now limit a company’s ability to fire an employee for failing a drug test. Courts have begun siding with workers who say their off-duty use of cannabis for medical reasons led to their unfair dismissal. Recent court cases have left employers facing discrimination charges for taking action against workers who flunk marijuana tests. Nevada in June limited rejecting job applicants for failing a test. Even cities are getting into the act, with the New York City Council voting in April to ban marijuana testing for job applicants (with exceptions for such jobs as public-safety workers).[CR-LF][CR-LF]Barry Sample, Ph.D., director of science and technology for the employer solutions division of Quest Diagnostics, says the rate of positive tests has increased 35 percent since 2010 in places where marijuana is illegal and has risen even faster in states where it’s legal—in those areas it jumped 71 percent during that period.

Quest Diagnostics Incorporated (NYSE: DGX), the world's leading provider of diagnostic information services, announced that it is scheduled to speak at the Baird 2019 Global Healthcare Conference in New York. Steve Rusckowski, Chairman, President and CEO and Jim Davis, Executive Vice President, General Diagnostics will discuss the company's vision, goals and two-point strategy to accelerate growth and drive operational excellence. The presentation is scheduled for Thursday, September 5, 2019 at 11:25 a.m. Eastern Time.