Focus: 71st AACC Annual Scientific Meeting & Clinical Lab Expo

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AACC, a global scientific and medical professional organization dedicated to better health through laboratory medicine, is pleased to announce a new competition that will support cutting-edge research that could significantly improve diagnostic testing and patient care. Winners of the competition will each receive a sample set from AACC’s Universal Sample Bank, which includes blood samples from hundreds of healthy individuals that were collected to aid medical studies.

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AACC has issued a new guidance document detailing best practices that hospitals and other healthcare institutions should follow when running a point-of-care testing program. As point-of-care tests emerge for more and more conditions—including COVID-19—the guidance emphasizes that it is essential for laboratory professionals and clinicians to collaborate on point-of-care testing programs to ensure this testing benefits patients.

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Laboratory professionals cannot be mute bystanders to inequality. Our legacy is one of service and AACC calls upon our community to be part of the dialogue to promote racial equality.

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Now that the latest coronavirus relief package, known as the Heroes Act, has moved forward to the U.S. Senate, AACC has sent a letter to Senate leadership outlining five key recommendations that will improve COVID-19 testing capacity across the U.S. AACC urges the Senate to ensure these recommendations are addressed within the Heroes Act, as they are critical to preventing a second wave of the pandemic.

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To ensure the proper use of antibody testing for the novel coronavirus, AACC today issued a public statement detailing the role these tests should play in the management of COVID-19 patients and in the development of public health policy. In particular, the organization emphasizes that healthcare professionals and policymakers should work closely with laboratory experts on antibody testing to ensure that these tests are validated, used appropriately, and interpreted correctly.

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A first-of-its-kind study published today in AACC’s Clinical Chemistry journal compared the performance of two COVID-19 antibody tests and found that—even though both tests are FDA authorized—one produced more incorrect results than the other. These findings could help healthcare professionals and researchers to better select antibody tests, which are essential to both treating COVID-19 patients and determining the full extent of the outbreak.

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With the first home collection test kit for COVID-19 now authorized by the FDA, AACC is warning that more evidence is needed before the country can rely on home-based kits.

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To address some of the confusion surrounding COVID-19 testing, AACC today launched a video series in which leading laboratory experts answer common questions about tests for the pandemic. From persistent supply shortages to the emergence of antibody tests, these videos quickly answer the questions that patients and the general public have been asking.

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Now that diagnostic companies can sell COVID-19 antibody tests without FDA authorization, healthcare teams should work closely with clinical laboratory experts to ensure that these tests are thoroughly validated and used appropriately. A new opinion piece in AACC’s Clinical Chemistry journal emphasizes that this is critical to minimizing the risk of inaccurate results from these tests, which could have potentially life-threatening consequences.

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AACC commends Congress for responding to the concerns of the clinical laboratory community and including $25 billion in the Paycheck Protection Program and Health Care Enhancement Act that is broadly marked for expanding the nation’s coronavirus testing capacity.

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AACC, a global scientific and medical professional organization dedicated to better health through laboratory medicine, is pleased to announce the recipients of the 2020 AACC and AACC Academy Awards. Through this annual awards program, AACC and its academy recognize individuals worldwide for exceptional research and service in the field of laboratory medicine, and strive to raise awareness that clinical laboratory testing is vital to quality patient care.

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With shortages of test components and swabs, labs still face huge obstacles to COVID-19 testing. With new White House guidelines reliant on more testing, AACC is urging the administration to find and coordinate resources so lab experts can do their jobs.

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In the wake of FDA's decision to loosen its emergency use authorization criteria for COVID-19 tests, reports have now been surfacing about unreliable commercial COVID-19 serological tests. While this is a major concern, AACC wants to emphasize that these problematic commercial tests are not the same as laboratory-developed tests--and that we still strongly support FDA's decision to step back from regulating lab-developed tests for COVID-19.

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A first-of-its-kind study published in AACC’s Clinical Chemistry journal has found that low vitamin D levels alone do not cause osteoporotic fractures. This research could resolve the longstanding debate over whether vitamin D supplements prevent these fractures, and indicates that members of the general population should not rely on vitamin D by itself for this purpose.

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AACC is pleased to announce that the organization will be able to preserve the complete 2020 AACC Annual Scientific Meeting & Clinical Lab Expo experience for its attendees by moving the meeting to December 13-17, 2020. After carefully monitoring the ongoing global crisis caused by the COVID-19 outbreak, the association’s leadership determined that rescheduling is the best way to safeguard the health of meeting attendees, partners, and staff, which is AACC’s number one priority.

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AACC applauds the U.S. Senate for responding to the concerns of the clinical laboratory community and revising the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act to ensure that it provides insurance coverage for all COVID-19 tests, regardless of whether or not they are performed under an FDA emergency use authorization (EUA).

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Breaking research in AACC’s The Journal of Applied Laboratory Medicine shows that the fentanyl in epidurals can pass on to babies during labor. While the infants in this study did not experience adverse effects from this fentanyl transfer, this information is crucial to ensuring that new mothers don’t get falsely accused of fentanyl abuse, which can have dire social repercussions for mother and child.

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To facilitate rapid identification of COVID-19 cases, AACC has launched a directory of U.S. clinical laboratories that are, or will be, performing testing for SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19. This directory is designed to help healthcare providers quickly find laboratories that can diagnose patients suspected to have COVID-19.

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On March 16, FDA updated its guidance on COVID-19 testing to allow clinical labs to create and perform COVID-19 tests without pursuing FDA emergency use authorization (EUA). AACC commends this decision, which will help speed the expansion of COVID-19 testing at this crucial time. However, the association remains concerned that the Families First Coronavirus Response Act does not provide coverage for COVID-19 tests unless the tests are performed under an EUA. AACC urges Congress to rectify this problem before passing the bill so that all patients will have access to coronavirus testing.

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AACC greatly values the work that the U.S. House of Representatives has done to support American families in the midst of the coronavirus outbreak and is supportive of the goals of H.R. 6201, the Families First Coronavirus Response Act. However, we are concerned that the language as currently drafted does not provide coverage for COVID-19 tests performed prior to those tests receiving Emergency Use Authorization (EUA) from the Food & Drug Administration (FDA).

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On March 5, U.S. House and Senate lawmakers introduced the VALID Act, which would give the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) new, expansive powers to regulate laboratory developed tests—tests that are already regulated by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) and are subject to stringent personnel, quality control, and proficiency testing requirements. This bill promotes duplicative, costly federal regulations for clinical laboratories that will result in decreased patient access to essential medical tests. AACC urges Congress not to act on this bill until its impact on healthcare can be thoroughly evaluated.

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AACC thanks the FDA for being responsive to the concerns of the clinical laboratory community and amending the coronavirus guidance to allow CMS-certified labs to develop and implement new tests for coronavirus prior to FDA approval.

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In a letter to the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), AACC is urging the agency to allow clinical laboratories to develop coronavirus tests without going through FDA review. Lifting this regulatory requirement is key to ensuring that all patients have access to high-quality coronavirus testing and that healthcare workers have the tools they need to control the spread of this disease in the U.S.

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Breaking research in AACC’s Clinical Chemistry journal shows that two new tests accurately diagnose coronavirus infection in about 1 hour. These tests could play a critical role in halting this deadly outbreak by enabling healthcare workers to isolate and treat patients much faster than is currently possible.

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AACC today announced that its CEO, Janet B. Kreizman, will retire in the second quarter of 2020. “For the past 7 years, Janet has been a strategic leader for the organization, strengthening the association’s position as the leading voice and hub for laboratory medicine professionals dedicated to advancing quality patient care and improved health outcomes,” said AACC President Dr. Carmen L. Wiley.

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Biotin’s upsurge in popularity has led to a parallel rise in incidents of this health supplement interfering with critical medical tests. A new guidance document from AACC urges clinicians and laboratory experts to collaborate to prevent this potentially harmful test interference, and to ensure that patients taking biotin receive high quality care.

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Novel research shows that a blood test can differentiate elderly concussion patients with brain tissue damage from those without it. This finding, published in the special brain health collection of AACC’s The Journal of Applied Laboratory Medicine, could help ensure that elderly patients with severe concussions receive crucial treatment for their injuries.

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In a special brain health collection, AACC’s The Journal of Applied Laboratory Medicine highlights the innovative clinical tests that laboratory medicine experts are developing to improve care for concussions.

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One of the many advertised benefits of vitamin D and fish oil supplements is that they reduce systemic inflammation, which in turn could help prevent certain chronic illnesses. However, a first-of-its-kind study published in AACC’s journal Clinical Chemistry has discovered that these two supplements do not actually reduce inflammation in healthy individuals, a finding that could help consumers make more informed choices about which supplements they decide to take.

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AACC, a global scientific and medical professional organization dedicated to better health through laboratory medicine, is pleased to announce that its peer-reviewed publication The Journal of Applied Laboratory Medicine has been accepted for indexing in PubMed, one of the largest and most respected databases of medical research in the world.

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AACC, a global scientific and medical professional organization dedicated to better health through laboratory medicine, is pleased to announce a publishing partnership with Oxford University Press for its peer-reviewed journals, Clinical Chemistry and The Journal of Applied Laboratory Medicine. Both journals will join Oxford University Press’s world-class science portfolio starting in January 2020. The partnership will increase researchers’ and healthcare practitioners’ access worldwide to the important science published in the journals.

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Point-of-care testing is transforming healthcare: this type of testing helps patients get diagnosed and treated faster, and also makes it easier for patients in remote areas to have access to medical testing. Join AACC and leading experts in laboratory medicine for a discussion about what lies ahead for point-of-care testing and what needs to happen so that all patients can benefit from quality testing of this kind.

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AACC welcomed thousands of medical professionals and healthcare leaders to the 71st AACC Annual Scientific Meeting & Clinical Lab Expo from August 4-8. The meeting featured pioneering advances in medical testing that will help patients get the right diagnoses and the care they need.

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AACC welcomed thousands of medical professionals and healthcare leaders to the 71st AACC Annual Scientific Meeting & Clinical Lab Expo from August 4-8. The meeting featured pioneering advances in medical testing that will help patients get the right diagnoses and the care they need.

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Samplla™, a family of specimen collection devices which are designed to provide ambient transportation for up to 21 days. Specimens applied to Samplla™ are immediately “dried and stabilized” within a local atmospheric condition using its Samplla Modified Atmosphere Packaging (sMAP), that provides an atmosphere separated from the ambient atmosphere and resistant to gas exchange – the result, stability. Samplla™ S device, the first product of this line of products was perfected to collect, transport and store bodily fluid specimens.

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The UNIVANTS of Healthcare Excellence Award annually recognizes teams who collaborate across disciplines and transform healthcare delivery, and ultimately patient lives. the 2019 award recipients are outlined below.

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Beckman Coulter’s DxH 520 Hematology Analyzer receives Scientists’ Choice Award and Named Best New Clinical Product

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Samplla™, a family of specimen collection devices which are designed to provide ambient transportation for up to 21 days. Specimens applied to Samplla™ are immediately “dried and stabilized” within a local atmospheric condition using its Samplla Modified Atmosphere Packaging (sMAP), that provides an atmosphere separated from the ambient atmosphere and resistant to gas exchange – the result, stability. Samplla™ S device, the first product of this line of products was perfected to collect, transport and store bodily fluid specimens.

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Beckman Coulter MicroScan Wins IMV ServiceTrak™ Best System Performance for the Second Year in a Row

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As the leader in Advanced Diagnostics, including Next Generation Sequencing (NGS), Quest joins a select group of commercial and academic laboratories to meet the rigorous requirements for participation in this clinical trial. Both the Quest Med Fusion 50SEQ cancer panel and IBM Watson Genomics from Quest Diagnostics service fulfill the trial's criteria for accuracy and reliability in tumor profiling.

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The power of healthcare data gives rise to novel markers of cardiovascular disease and stroke in the earliest, preventable stages

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Data Innovations (DI) and STS announced a strategic partnership to deliver automated and intelligent rules verification testing for Data Innovations’ industry-leading Autoverification solution from their flagship lab enablement platform, Instrument Manager.

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Lab enablement solutions industry leader, Data Innovations, celebrates their 30th anniversary. Founded as the lab industry’s first Connectivity provider with its flagship solution, Data Innovations has continued to evolve as the clinical lab’s go-to technology platform for lab optimization, standardization, and workflow automation.

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Analysis of more than ten million workplace drug test results shows increases in marijuana positivity across nearly all employee testing categories. Increases in post-accident positivity in the general U.S. workforce outpace those for all other testing reasons, including pre-employment screening

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Eight presentations highlight Quest's Advanced Diagnostics testing and research insights into hereditary genetics.

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Eight presentations highlight Quest's Advanced Diagnostics testing and research insights into hereditary genetics.

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AACC is pleased to announce the recipients of the AACC 2019 Top Corporate Supporter Awards. This year, AACC recognizes 44 different companies and organizations that generously support the association through sponsorships, advertising, and exhibiting. These significant contributions make it possible for AACC to improve patient care by fostering research, innovation, and professional excellence in the field of laboratory medicine.

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Two new companies join the GDN, expanding this novel worldwide network of leading diagnostics service providers. With nine members spanning the globe, the GDN has a presence in countries covering two-thirds of the world's population, and over 90% of the global pharmaceutical market

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Two new companies join the GDN, expanding this novel worldwide network of leading diagnostics service providers. With nine members spanning the globe, the GDN has a presence in countries covering two-thirds of the world's population, and over 90% of the global pharmaceutical market

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At the 71st AACC Annual Scientific Meeting & Clinical Lab Expo, Siemens Healthineers will feature in Booth #1039 its innovative IT solutions to combat the laboratory’s staffing challenges, limited budgets, and the increasing complexity in sample management and testing.