Lab Clinical Consultant | Manage My Practice

Guest Lab Consultant Libby Knollmeyer: What to Expect When You’re Expecting (or Not Expecting) a Lab Inspection

Posted by Abraham Whaley on February 8, 2012

Prior to CLIA ’88 (Clinical Laboratory Improvement Amendments of 1988) only laboratories participating in interstate commerce underwent inspections. Since the enactment of CLIA ’88, all laboratories are subject to inspection, and all non-waived laboratories are inspected. CLIA has the right to appear at any point in time to inspect a lab.

There are two types of inspections for non-waived labs: routine and non-routine

Routine inspections take place every two years as mandated by CLIA, regardless of which agency is responsible for the inspection. If a lab has a Certificate of Compliance, CLIA will be the inspecting agency. If the laboratory has opted for a Certificate of Accreditation from one of the approved accrediting agencies, that agency will perform the inspection. Either way, the inspections are set on a two year cycle and the renewal of the laboratory’s certificate is dependent upon successful completion of the inspection. If no deficiencies are cited, the certificate will be renewed very soon after the inspection is completed. If deficiencies are cited during the inspection, the laboratory will receive a deficiency report and will be given a timeline to submit a plan of correction. Once the plan of correction is accepted by the inspecting agency, the certificate will be renewed. Failure to achieve a successful conclusion to the inspection process will result in the cancellation of the lab’s certificate, and therefore loss of privileges to do lab testing and to bill for lab testing.

The inspection cycle differs slightly for a newly set-up laboratory. CLIA or the accrediting agency will come in to do an inspection after the lab has been in operation for 3 – 6 months to ensure everything required is in place and all regulations are being followed. CLIA and the accrediting agencies do not inspect prior to the lab starting testing operations because they want the lab to generate data for them to review upon their inspection.

(more…)

Tags: annual lab inspection, best agency for a new laboratory, CAP, CLIA inspection, CLIA lab inspection, Clinical Laboratory Improvement Amendment, Clinical Laboratory Improvement Amendments of 1988, COLA, College of American Pathologists, Commission on Office Laboratory Accreditation, complaints abut laboratories, free lab inspection checklist, Lab Clinical Consultant, Lab Technical Consultant, lab test, lab testing in medical practices, laboratory tests, Libby Knollmeyer, non-waived lab status, POL, rules for medical office laboratories, The Joint Commission, TJC, waived lab, waived lab status, waived laboratory, what will a CLIA inspector do?

Posted in: Day-to-Day Operations, General

Leave a Comment (0) →

Guest Lab Consultant Libby Knollmeyer: The Pros and Cons of Moving from a Waived Medical Lab to a Non-Waived (Certificate of Compliance) Lab

Posted by Abraham Whaley on December 11, 2011

Many physicians have some type of lab testing capability in their practices, with most practice labs classified as Waived Labs, which means having a Certificate of Waiver. This Certificate enables a practice to perform simple tests including tests such as urine dipsticks, rapid Strep A for sore throats, Mono Tests, pregnancy slide tests on urine, and Rapid Flu tests.

There is little effort required to become or maintain a Waived Lab

There are no personnel qualification requirements, and the only regulation is to “follow the manufacturer’s instructions” on the test packages. In order to obtain a Certificate of Waiver, an application form (the CMS116 form) must be completed and submitted to CLIA at the state CLIA office. The CLIA office will issue a CLIA identification number and the practice will receive a bill for the Certificate of Waiver for $150. Life is wonderfully simple at a Certificate of Waiver level.