The Food & Drug Administration has approved a new test to screen blood donors for a blood-borne parasite that causes Chagas disease, a serious and potentially fatal parasitic infection. The test, called the Ortho T. cruzi ELISA Test System, detects antibodies to the Trypanosoma cruzi parasite and is the first such test approved by the FDA.

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January 15, 2007 - Table of Contents

NIR January 15, 2007 (full PDF issue)

Medicare Fee Fix Tops Physicians’ Legislative Agenda

Claims Will Be Paid at Correct ’07 Rates, CMS Assures Doctors

FDA Okays New Blood Screening Test for Chagas Disease

Pathology RVU Changes = Lower PC Rates, Some TC Gains

Key Laboratory, Pathology Priorities for the New Congress

States Get Financial Incentive to Beef Up False Claim Laws

CMS Rescinds Notice Ending Pathology TC Protection

Down Syndrome Screening Urged for All Pregnancies

Washington Watch: On a Personal Note