Briefing: Ensuring children's access to high quality medical testing

Room 198, Senate Russell Building

WASHINGTON, Feb. 3, 2026 /PRNewswire/ -- Laboratory tests are vital to diagnosing and treating children from infancy to adulthood. Join the Association for Diagnostics & Laboratory Medicine (ADLM) and leading experts in laboratory medicine and pediatric health for a timely update on the most pressing challenges facing pediatric testing — and what Congress can do to solve them. Speakers will address:

• The importance of newborn screening in treating rare diseases that can lead to life altering impairments or death if they aren't caught in time.
• The pressing need to improve the quality of reference ranges used to interpret test results for children.
• The essential role that laboratory developed tests play in diagnosing and treating pediatric conditions for which no commercial tests exist.

Newborn screening is one of the United States' most successful public health programs. It serves nearly 4 million infants each year, saving thousands of babies' lives and giving them the best chance at a healthy life. Despite its positive impact, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services in April 2025 terminated the Advisory Committee on Heritable Disorders in Newborns and Children, which provided critical guidance on the application of universal newborn screening tests, technologies, policies, guidelines, and standards.

Further complicating matters, pediatric reference intervals, which help doctors define what's normal in laboratory test results, are often poor quality or nonexistent, resulting in misdiagnosis and inappropriate treatment.

Additionally, few test manufacturers develop tests specifically for children because many childhood disorders are rare. Laboratories fill this gap with laboratory developed tests. Without these tests, many children would not get critical diagnoses and care. However, recent federal efforts have aimed to create duplicative regulations that could endanger access to these tests.

All of these issues lie within congressional jurisdiction. This briefing will explore what lawmakers can do to maintain the high quality of newborn screening programs, improve pediatric reference intervals, and reform regulation for laboratory developed tests while still protecting children's access to these essential tests.

When: Luncheon briefing: 12 – 1 p.m., Wednesday, February 4

Where: Room 198, Senate Russell Building

Who:

• Moderator: Dennis J. Dietzen, PhD, DABCC, FADLM, Megan Dishop Chair of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine, Phoenix Children's Hospital
• Danyel Tacker, PhD, DABCC, FADLM, clinical professor, West Virginia University Hospitals
• Stanley F. Lo, PhD, DABCC, FADLM, professor, pathology, Medical College of Wisconsin
• Hubert Vesper, PhD, director, Clinical Standardization Programs, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention

RSVP: Email Christine DeLong, ADLM director, editorial and media relations at [email protected].

About the Association for Diagnostics & Laboratory Medicine (ADLM)
Dedicated to achieving better health for all through laboratory medicine, ADLM unites more than 70,000 clinical laboratory professionals, physicians, research scientists, and business leaders from 110 countries around the world. Our community is at the forefront of laboratory medicine's diverse subdisciplines, including clinical chemistry, molecular diagnostics, mass spectrometry, clinical microbiology, and data science, and is comprised of individuals holding the spectrum of lab-related professional degrees, certifications, and credentials. Since 1948, ADLM has championed the advancement of laboratory medicine by fostering scientific collaboration, knowledge sharing, and the development of innovative solutions that enhance health outcomes. For more information, visit www.myadlm.org.

Christine DeLong
ADLM
Director, Editorial and Media Relations
(p) 202.835.8722
[email protected]

Bill Malone
ADLM
Senior Director, Strategic Communications
(p) 202.835.8756
[email protected]

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SOURCE Association for Diagnostics & Laboratory Medicine (ADLM)