CLFS review potential negative for Quest, LabCorp, says Piper Jaffray

Piper Jaffray views the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services' plan to revalue Clinical Lab Fee Schedule test codes as a potential negative for Quest Diagnostics (DGX) and LabCorp (LH) as well as diagnostic manufacturers like Abbott (ABT), Danaher (DHR), Johnson & Johnson (JNJ) and Roche (RHHBY). Piper says Quest and LabCorp both have around 12% of revenue exposure to CLFS, which it feels presents risk for additional reimbursement pressure in FY15. The review follows an Office of Inspector General report that found CMS paid between 18%-30% higher for 20 high volume/high expenditure tests than state and federal plans.

Advertisement