FDA to oversee genetic and other lab tests

The FDA has announced that more than 11,000 lab-driven diagnostic tests that have never been regulated will now fall under the agency's oversight. This includes cancer screening and genetic testing, an area of research that has exploded in the past couple of decades.

A new regulatory system has been outlined in guidelines that are making their way through U.S. Congress. “Just as drugs need to be safe and effective for treating diseases, medical devices used to help diagnose disease and direct therapy also need to be safe and effective. These devices need to be accurate and reliable.,” Margaret Hamburg, the FDA Commissioner, reportedly said in a conference call.

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Positron, a New York-based nuclear imaging company, will now provide Upbeat Cardiology Solutions with advanced PET/CT systems and services. 

The nuclear imaging isotope shortage of molybdenum-99 may be over now that the sidelined reactor is restarting. ASNC's president says PET and new SPECT technologies helped cardiac imaging labs better weather the storm.

CMS has more than doubled the CCTA payment rate from $175 to $357.13. The move, expected to have a significant impact on the utilization of cardiac CT, received immediate praise from imaging specialists.