The accreditation agencies that have been given deemed authority by CMS is summarized in Table 1. All of these agencies have the authority to inspect not only for specific accreditation requirements but also for the CLIA requirements.
There are two states that are exempt from CLIA regulations: New York and Washington. These states have laws that are equal to or more stringent than CLIA. Thus, those states are only subject to their state requirements (refer to the Exempt State List, attached below).
Some local and state departments of health also perform inspections to verify compliance with additional state and local regulations.
Table 1. Inspection Agencies Deembed by CMS.
Agency | Purpose | Review Method | Mandatory/Voluntary | Standards/Regulations |
CMS- Center for Medicare and Medicaid Services | Confirmation of compliance testing quality required by the CLIA ’88 legislation | Inspection | Mandatory | Dependent on the test complexity classification system established by CLIA ‘88 |
Food and Drug Administration (FDA) | Oversee the collection, distribution, and safety of blood components | Inspection | Mandatory | Code of Federal Regulation |
COLA | Laboratory improvement of quality, efficiency, and meeting federal (CLIA) and specific accreditation requirements | Inspection (Survey) | Voluntary | COLA Laboratory Accreditation Manual |
AABB | Oversee the safety of all aspects of transfusion medicine | Assessments | Voluntary | AABB Standards |
College of American Pathologists (CAP) | Assist with patient safety by providing oversight and assistance with quality of laboratory medicine | Inspection | Voluntary | Standards for laboratory accreditation |
Joint Commission (JC) | To direct the laboratory and total organization to zero harm | Inspection (Survey) | Voluntary | Standards for Laboratory Accreditation |
American Association for Laboratory Accreditation (A2LA) | To provide quality services and acceptance of results | Inspection (Survey) | Voluntary | Uses ISO standards for specialty being reviewed |
American Society for Histocompatibility and Immunogenetics | To promote the highest standard of laboratory testing to provide optimum patient care | Inspection (Survey) | Voluntary | Standards for Accredited Laboratories American Society for Histocompatibility and Immunogenetics |
Accreditation Association for Hospitals and Health Systems/Healthcare Facilities Accreditation Programs (AOA/HFAP) | To assist the laboratory in improvement of quality of laboratory testing through peer review, education, and compliance with established conditions and standards | Inspection (Survey) | Voluntary | HFAP Accreditation Requirements for Clinical Laboratories |
About AccreditationJay Chothani2021-12-03T15:30:57+00:00
ABOUT ACHC ACCREDITATION
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What is Accreditation?
When it comes to health care, accreditation refers to the official review process that allows organizations like yours to demonstrate their ability to meet official regulatory requirements and standards. Requirements differ per accreditation organization, but the intent remains the same: to prove that your healthcare organization’s commitment to meeting accreditation standards results in a higher level of performance and a greater focus on patient care.
Deeming Authority
Why Accreditation Matters
You’re committed to quality. You’re passionate about patient care. Earning accreditation is a natural next step in establishing or maintaining superior safety and healthcare standards within your organization.
Demonstrate Your Commitment to Excellence.
Accreditation is used to measure the quality of healthcare organizations. Going through the accreditation process will help your organization highlight strengths, reaffirm your commitment to compliance, and drive continuous improvement.
Differentiate Your Organization.
Not every healthcare organization prioritizes earning accreditation. Taking the steps to establish or renew your accreditation shows your commitment to improving patient outcomes and safety—while also placing you firmly ahead of the competition.
Gain a Partner in Accreditation.
Accreditation is more than the pursuit of healthcare excellence. Our collaborative, educational survey approach helps organizations understand their strengths and deficiencies, enabling them to develop a thorough Plan of Correction (POC) to maintain ongoing compliance.
Accreditation is used to measure the quality of healthcare organizations. Going through the accreditation process will help your organization highlight strengths, reaffirm your commitment to compliance, and drive continuous improvement.
Not every healthcare organization prioritizes earning accreditation. Taking the steps to establish or renew your accreditation shows your commitment to improving patient outcomes and safety—while also placing you firmly ahead of the competition.
Accreditation is more than the pursuit of healthcare excellence. Our collaborative, educational survey approach helps organizations understand their strengths and deficiencies, enabling them to develop a thorough Plan of Correction (POC) to maintain ongoing compliance.
Why ACHC Accreditation?
ACHC Accreditation Programs were created in consultation with industry experts to ensure relevance, value, and integrity, and the best in customer service. With your needs in mind, our Surveyors use an educational approach to help you enhance the quality of services you provide and improve operational efficiencies.
Our mission is simple: to deliver the best possible accreditation experience.
Here’s how we do it:
Service-Specific Standards
Prepare for accreditation with realistic, discernible standards tailored to your specific service areas.
Commitment to Education
Get ready for accreditation success with unparalleled, 24/7 access to program-specific resources via ACHCU, our educational division.
Industry-Expert Surveyors
Feel confident in our in-depth knowledge about your organization’s pain points and best practices. Our Surveyors are industry experts with extensive field experience.
CMS Deeming Authority
Dedicated Account Advisors
Get the most relevant, up-to-date advice about the accreditation process from our dedicated Account Advisors whenever you need it.
Prepare for accreditation with realistic, discernible standards tailored to your specific service areas
Get ready for accreditation success with unparalleled, 24/7 access to program-specific resources via ACHCU, our educational division.
Get the most relevant, up-to-date advice about the accreditation process from our dedicated Account Advisors whenever you need it.
Our Accreditation Process
ACHC is here to help you throughout the entire accreditation process—before, during, and after your survey.
- 1
Preparing for Accreditation
We are committed to helping you achieve accreditation long before the formal survey begins. It starts with access to ACHCU, our educational division that offers an extensive collection of educational resources designed to help prepare you for the accreditation process, including workshops, webinars, workbooks, and more. These tools will help you conduct a comprehensive review of your organization as it relates to ACHC Accreditation Standards, giving you the knowledge to identify compliance gaps and make necessary adjustments.
- 2
Achieving Accreditation with ACHC
Our streamlined process is designed to help you quickly and easily achieve accreditation—while also enhancing your business operations and patient care. During your formal accreditation review, our industry-expert Surveyors will perform a comprehensive process that considers organizational structure, policies and procedures, and compliance with state and federal regulations.
We are committed to helping you achieve accreditation long before the formal survey begins. It starts with access to ACHCU , our educational division that offers an extensive collection of educational resources designed to help prepare you for the accreditation process, including workshops, webinars, workbooks, and more. These tools will help you conduct a comprehensive review of your organization as it relates to ACHC Accreditation Standards, giving you the knowledge to identify compliance gaps and make necessary adjustments.
Our streamlined process is designed to help you quickly and easily achieve accreditation—while also enhancing your business operations and patient care. During your formal accreditation review, our industry-expert Surveyors will perform a comprehensive process that considers organizational structure, policies and procedures, and compliance with state and federal regulations.
Our industry-expert Surveyors will conduct a review of your organization’s operations every three years to help you maintain excellence and a culture of continuous improvement. By maintaining compliance with ACHC Accreditation Standards, your organization will benefit from consistent operational efficiency and will be better prepared to deliver high-quality patient care. To access tools that will help, be sure to log in to Customer Central.
- 3
Maintaining Accreditation
Our industry-expert Surveyors will conduct a review of your organization’s operations every three years (two years for clinical laboratories) to help you maintain excellence and a culture of continuous improvement. By maintaining compliance with ACHC Accreditation Standards, your organization will benefit from consistent operational efficiency and will be better prepared to deliver high-quality patient care. To access tools that will help, be sure to log in to Customer Central.
Start preparing for accreditation now with ACHCU educational resources.
Get the big picture about how ACHC offers more.
Get Accredited.
Start your ACHC Accreditation process now.