March 23, 2018, Frederick, MD – The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) issued a notice in the Federal Register on March 23, 2018 announcing the reapproval of the American Association for Laboratory Accreditation (A2LA) as an accreditation organization for clinical laboratories under the Clinical Laboratory Improvement Amendments of 1988 (CLIA) program for all specialty and subspecialty areas under CLIA. This followed a rigorous re-evaluation of A2LA’s documented procedures, and a thorough on-site review of records and operational practices by the CMS team. The recognition is for a period of four years, March 23, 2018 through March 23, 2022. A2LA initially was granted deemed status from CMS in 2014.
A world-renowned leader in accreditation, maintaining this pinnacle achievement places A2LA as the only accreditation body in the world holding the highest level of formal clinical laboratory accreditation recognitions: CMS CLIA Deemed Status and International Laboratory Accreditation Cooperation (ILAC) Recognition.
“These formal recognitions are an external validation of A2LA’s determination and commitment to improving laboratory quality and patient care; raising the bar on clinical accreditation here in the United States and globally,” states Lonnie Spires, A2LA President and CEO.