Bill to protect access to laboratory services advances in House

The House Energy & Commerce Health Subcommittee on Sept. 11 voted to approve the Taking Essential Steps for Testing Act (H.R. 6118/ S. 3391), American Hospital Association-supported legislation that gives the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services more discretion in enforcing the Clinical Laboratory Improvement Amendments to preserve patient access to laboratory services. The TEST Act would give CMS discretion so that hospital and other laboratories would not have their CLIA certificates revoked for the unintentional referral of proficiency testing samples to another laboratory, or for referrals that occur without the intent to subvert the rules.

The measure next goes to the full committee for consideration.