Although it’s clearly a positive development for the world at large, the almost miraculous emergence of a vaccine for COVID-19 in less than a year poses legal challenges for employers in general and … [Read more...]
Compliance Perspectives
How to Create a Legally Sound Substance Abuse Policy
November 2, 2020
Bottom Line on Top: Make it all about fitness for duty, rather than zero tolerance Although it may sound good, zero tolerance may not be the best foundation on which to build a legally enforceable … [Read more...]
Compliance Perspectives
Use Contact Logging to Ensure Lab Employees Practice Social Distancing
July 2, 2020
Managing a lab compliance program in the age of COVID-19 poses new and unprecedented challenges. One of the biggest and most important is ensuring that lab employees and the persons they interact with … [Read more...]
Compliance Perspectives
How to Create a Legally Sound COVID-19 Medical Screening Policy
April 27, 2020
As essential workplaces, testing labs need to remain open and operating during the pandemic. At the same time, they need to ensure that employees practice social distancing and keep the infected and … [Read more...]
Compliance Perspectives
A 5-Step Game Plan for Protecting Lab Employees from COVID-19 Infection
April 2, 2020
In this time where so much is riding on diagnostic testing, labs face the imperative of safeguarding their employees against risks of COVID-19 infection. Here’s a quick overview of the applicable laws … [Read more...]
Compliance Perspectives: New Laws & the Top 5 Challenges Lab Compliance Officers Face in 2020
January 2, 2020
Labs remain at the forefront of the federal government’s suspicious persons list and health care fraud enforcement agenda. But in addition to the customary laws that labs are used to, the government … [Read more...]
ANTI-KICKBACK
Compliance Perspectives: 5 Ways to Avoid Kickback Risks When Placing Phlebotomists in Ordering Physician’s Offices
December 12, 2019
It’s not uncommon for labs to place a phlebotomist in a physician’s office to collect and process samples for testing. While not strictly illegal, this practice raises bright red flags under kickback … [Read more...]
HIPPA
Compliance Perspectives: Using Document Management Systems to Avoid HIPAA Pitfalls
October 30, 2019
By Andreas Rivera bio One of the most challenging aspects of HIPAA compliance is ensuring that your methods of storing lab records containing protected health information (PHI) meet all of the … [Read more...]
Anti-Kickback
Special Report: Long Awaited Kickback Relief Rules Keep Labs in the Cold
October 22, 2019
They’re finally here! After years of talking about adapting the decades-old kickback laws to modern medical market conditions, CMS and OIG proposed new rules (the Proposal) on Oct. 9, 2019. Whether it … [Read more...]
You Make the Call: Does Lab Manager Have a Valid Claim for Age Discrimination?
October 17, 2019
What’s At Stake As lab manager involved in personnel decisions, you have a responsibility to ensure your lab complies with the Age Discrimination in Employment Act (ADEA), which bans taking … [Read more...]
