OraSure Applauds Congress for Passing Legislation to Enable Routine HIV Testing Throughout the U.S. Veterans Health Care System
September 29 2008 - 2:16PM
Business Wire
OraSure Technologies, Inc. (NASDAQ:OSUR), the market leader in oral
fluid diagnostics, today issued a statement applauding the U.S.
Congress for passage of The Veterans Mental Health and Other Care
Improvements Act of 2008 (S. 2162). The bill includes a provision
that repeals the 1988 Veterans Benefits and Services law which has
limited the implementation of the Centers for Disease Control and
Prevention (CDC) guidelines for routine HIV testing, counseling and
early diagnosis that were issued in 2006. U.S. Congressman Mike
Doyle (D-PA-14) and U.S. Congressman Charles Dent (R-PA-15)
championed the provision, which now removes significant barriers to
routine HIV testing within the U.S. Department of Veterans� Affairs
(VA) making it possible to implement broad-scale HIV screening. The
VA is the largest integrated healthcare provider in the United
States and the single largest provider of HIV care. The 1988
Veterans Benefits and Services law which is being repealed includes
consent restrictions and impedes any universal HIV testing program
unless specific funding to do so has been appropriated by Congress.
By repealing this law, the VA can now adopt the CDC�s
recommendation of streamlined counseling and can implement routine
HIV screening in VA health care settings. �OraSure commends
Congressman Doyle, Congressman Dent and other members of Congress
for enabling a critical new healthcare initiative for veterans
nationwide,� said Douglas A. Michels, President and Chief Executive
Officer of OraSure Technologies. "We applaud Congress�s efforts to
remove the barriers that have limited the access to HIV screening
and counseling for all veterans.� About OraSure Technologies
OraSure Technologies develops, manufactures and markets oral fluid
specimen collection devices using proprietary oral fluid
technologies, diagnostic products including immunoassays and other
in vitro diagnostic tests, and other medical devices. These
products are sold in the United States as well as internationally
to various clinical laboratories, hospitals, clinics,
community-based organizations and other public health
organizations, distributors, government agencies, physicians'
offices, and commercial and industrial entities. OraSure
Technologies is the leading supplier of oral-fluid collection
devices and assays to the life insurance industry and public health
markets for the detection of antibodies to HIV. In addition, the
Company supplies oral-fluid testing solutions for drugs of abuse
testing. The OraQuick ADVANCE� Rapid HIV-1/2 Antibody Test,
manufactured and sold by OraSure Technologies, is the first and
only U.S. Food and Drug Administration ("FDA") approved and CLIA
(Clinical Laboratory Improvements Amendments Act of 1988) waived
rapid point-of-care test that can detect antibodies to both HIV-1
and HIV-2 in 20 minutes, using oral fluid, finger-stick or
venipuncture whole blood and plasma specimens. For more information
on the Company, please go to www.orasure.com.
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