COVID-19 testing revenues nosedived 80% from the prior-year quarter. On the flip side, in the first quarter of 2023, Quest Diagnostics reported a 10.7% decline in the top line.

The company believes that SALSA has the potential to fix PAMA permanently. In terms of Protecting Access to Medicare Act (PAMA), the company is optimistic about the recently introduced federal laboratory legislation, Saving Access to Laboratory Services Act (SALSA). In addition, to help offset inflationary pressure, the company has been pursuing an operational excellence strategy and closely managing the cost structure through its Invigorate initiatives. The company is helping Pennsylvania-based Tower Health manage its laboratory supply chain in addition to performing reference testing. In the first quarter, Quest Diagnostics witnessed success with contract wins in its reference and professional lab services offerings. This trend is directly related to the company’s ongoing efforts to partner with health plans to actively steer patients to high-quality, lower-cost providers like Quest, thereby saving money for the health plan, employers and plan members. Health plan volumes continued to grow faster than the overall business. The base business registered double-digit growth, driven by strong performance across physician and health system lab services. Quest Diagnostics reported better-than-expected first-quarter earnings and revenues. The stock has declined 0.3% compared with 18.3% decline of the industry. In the past year, Quest Diagnostics has outperformed its industry. The stock carries a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold). Over the past several quarters, the overall soft industry trends leading to a low-volume environment have acted as a dampener for Quest Diagnostics. A positive demography and cost reduction initiatives are the other upsides. Quest Diagnostics ( DGX Quick Quote DGX - Free Report) has been focusing on areas with high potential.

Download questdiagnostics com