On April 28, the CAP hosted its second virtual media forum of 2021, Life for Laboratories after COVID-19, in its ongoing commitment to educating media and the public on COVID-19 testing and the pandemic. The session, which was moderated by Speaker of the CAP House of Delegates Kathryn Knight, MD, FCAP, CAP President Patrick Godbey, MD, FCAP and Chair of the Council on Government and Professional Affairs Jonathan Myles, MD, FCAP discussed the challenges of managing the impact of COVID-19 on laboratories and patient access. The group also discussed the impact of the latest COVID-19 federal testing programs during the first 100 days of the Biden administration. Additionally, the group discussed the implications for patients who postponed their care because of the pandemic and the issues laboratories face when patients come back for care.

“With the Biden Administration’s first 100 days now complete and as the country continues to be vaccinated and move into a new phase, this forum provided a perfect opportunity to discuss the continued critical role of testing and our vision forward,” says CAP President Patrick Godbey, MD, FCAP, who introduced the program and was a panelist. “We thought it important to take a close look at the current challenges facing pathologists and the laboratories we direct, the implications of delayed testing due to the pandemic, as well as what our members are saying about the current and future state of testing.

There are still persistent issues with testing supplies, said Dr. Godbey, “and the actions by the government so far are headed in the right direction and needed. At the same time, supply shortages for testing materials could be mitigated by the decreased demand for COVID-19 testing because fewer patients are coming in with symptoms.”

During the briefing, Dr. Myles also addressed Medicare cuts that pathologists and other medical specialties are slated for major cuts in its reimbursement programs beginning in 2022. “This is not the time for cuts because our costs are up, our revenues have decreased, and we’ve responded to the pandemic by getting testing going. This would be devastating for our practices.” If nothing changes, pathologists will be subject to a 6% Medicare cut in 2022.

Review the full briefing program video recording and transcript.