New Definition for DTC Lab Testing Prompted by EverlyWell Business Model

A recent article in Dark Daily convinced me that we need a new definition for direct-to-consumer (DTC) lab testing which has also been called direct-access-testing (DAT) (see:Direct-to-Consumer Lab Test Start-Up EverlyWell Puts Clinical Laboratory Tests on Shelves at CVS and Target). Below is an excerpt from the article:....Julia Taylor Cheek, Founder and CEO ofEverlyWell, a well-financed digital health company based in Austin —hopes to build a... disruptive business in the clinical laboratory industry....Cheek is talking about the same primary business strategy of letting consumers purchase their own lab tests....The company has...expanded its product line to offer 35 panels, including first-to-market tests in fertility, vitamins, peri- and post-menopause, and high-risk HPV. In addition, EverlyWell has launched an end-to-end care model for consumers, now offering an independent physician consult and prescription, if appropriate, for select STDs and Lyme Disease testing. All of this is included in an upfront price before purchase....EverlyWell offers home health test kits, priced from $49 to $400 that people can order without a doctor ’s prescription and pay for online. Users take their samples (saliva, urine, or a pinprick of blood) with provided lancets and cotton swabs....EverlyWell ’s top selling tests are: Food sensitivity-$159; Thyroid function-$159; Metabolism-$89; and Vitamin D deficiency-$99....A physician reviews the test results...[and] reports on test result...

Source: Lab Soft News - July 17, 2019 Category: Laboratory Medicine Authors: Bruce Friedman Tags: Clinical Lab Industry News Clinical Lab Testing Diagnostics Direct Access Testing (DAT) Healthcare Innovations Lab Industry Trends Lab Processes and Procedures Medical Consumerism Medical Research Reference Laboratories Test Kits and H Source Type: blogs