Public Health

ACLA has become increasingly involved with public health issues over the past few years. Bioterrorism (including the attacks in New York on 9/11, and the use of anthrax as a biological weapon), and emerging infectious disease threats (e.g. SARS, West Nile Virus) resulted in ACLA meeting with HHS Secretary Tommy G. Thompson in July 2003, and subsequently Dr. Julie Gerberding, Director of the CDC in August 2003. The purpose of those meetings was to discuss how ACLA might better collaborate with public health efforts by contributing ACLA expertise and resources when appropriate and needed.  More recently, ACLA has offered to provide clinical laboratory assistance in the wake of hurricane Katrina. 

CDC Collaboration

ACLA continues in active discussions with CDC on a number of fronts.  Issues related to identification, reporting, and development of validation assays for new agents, HIV incidence testing, etc. are under discussion.  The offer of hurricane Katrina assistance was positively received by CDC.  Following an ACLA led conference call with CDC and a number of laboratory associations, CDC asked ACLA to coordinate the gathering of information about the specimen transport and supply distribution network capabilities of ACLA member companies in the affected areas in case there is a need to move specimens or other supplies to impacted testing sites. In response to CDC’s request, survey information from ACLA members was provided to CDC. This information demonstrated the extensive and well developed specimen transport and supply distribution networks ACLA members maintain in the impacted areas. Also provided was emergency contact information from each lab operating in those areas. In addition, ACLA facilitated communication between CDC and AdvaMed to address the reagent shortage. In communicating the information to CDC, ACLA's President, Alan Mertz,
stated that ACLA members stand ready, willing, and able to help in any way.

Quality Laboratory Performance Measures

ACLA recognizes the important role laboratory data can make in supporting quality performance metrics and is fully committed to programs that are designed to improve the effectiveness and safety of patient care and may serve as a positive force in our healthcare system. Furthermore, ACLA recognizes that the laboratory is an integral part of the continuum of quality health care delivery and that ACLA members have been in the business of providing quality and value added services for many years.  As an example, ACLA members have developed and implemented a vast electronic network with both the public and private sectors of the health care delivery system, and as such, can be a critical component of any quality performance measure data exchange system.

ACLA has met with and communicated to leading quality based organizations such as the National Quality Forum and the Institute for Quality in Laboratory Medicine, the importance of ACLA’s participation regarding how best to define quality for laboratory testing and services that support better delivery of patient care.