As technology advances and supply chain gains influence, Fisher Healthcare’s Amy Malik says sales reps must understand the unique needs of each laboratory.
The laboratory market is changing on multiple fronts at once. Artificial intelligence and automation are reshaping workflows, molecular testing is becoming more accessible, and consolidation is giving health system supply chains a larger voice in purchasing decisions. At the same time, reimbursement pressures and staffing, space and capital constraints are forcing laboratories and physician offices to rethink how testing is delivered.
For sales representatives, those changes create both challenges and opportunities. Fisher Healthcare’s Amy Malik said success increasingly depends on understanding not just the technology, but also the financial, operational and supply chain forces influencing each customer. The result is a laboratory market where the definition of efficiency can vary widely, and where a one-size-fits-all sales approach is unlikely to work.
Market forces
Laboratories are undergoing significant change as technology, testing capabilities and the business of healthcare reshape how diagnostic services are delivered. According to Malik, Sr. District Sales Manager, Gulf Coast, Fisher Healthcare, three developments stand out: artificial intelligence, the growing availability of molecular testing and the increasing influence of supply chain.
“First, the implementation of AI. Every major market is finding a way to implement AI. Laboratories are no different. The implementation of AI is allowing them to reduce manual work, improve consistency and make better decisions with complex data.”
The second major change is the availability of molecular testing. “These days, molecular testing platforms are everywhere and even the smallest of laboratories either have already implemented or are in the process of implementing molecular testing as much as possible.”
But perhaps the most significant change for suppliers and sales representatives is the growing role of supply chain in laboratory purchasing decisions. As healthcare organizations consolidate, clinical considerations increasingly intersect with standardization and financial objectives. “We are seeing more and more facilities purchased by larger IDNs consolidating a market, and this leads to a more involved supply chain. It is becoming more difficult to use clinical data to sell and maintain business.”
Malik said the shift reflects a broader recognition of supply chain as a strategic resource. “Bottom line is that Supply Chain was an underutilized resource for many years, and now larger systems have embraced the utility and financial benefits of a robust supply chain. Healthcare is a business and supply chain is here to cut costs and drive standardization.”
The economics of a changing laboratory
For laboratory customers, technological advances are unfolding alongside significant financial pressures. Malik said one of the most immediate challenges is related to reimbursement for molecular testing.
“Laboratory customers are struggling with molecular testing payment changes. Recently, we have seen many laboratories struggle due to being audited for their molecular payment billing submissions,” Malik said. “The problem is that during the audit, their CMS payments are held until the investigation is completed.”
For laboratories that depend heavily on molecular testing, those payment disruptions can have serious consequences. “Some of these labs only do this type of testing and therefore this is causing them to default on their contracts, close their businesses, or go bankrupt.”
Against that backdrop, Malik said sales professionals should keep an eye on three trends: AI, automation and laboratory economics.
“AI is allowing everything to speed up. Tests turn into results faster, and the laboratorian is there to keep things running smoothly.”
Automation is also becoming increasingly accessible, regardless of laboratory size. “Automation is everywhere and is available to everyone, no matter how large the laboratory,” Malik said. “Automation can prep a sample, aliquot the sample, automatically run QC, move plates through the incubation process, read those plates, and even update software. We have come a very long way in just the last 10 years.”
The third trend, economics, may be the most fluid. “Laboratory economics change in the blink of an eye,” Malik said. “We have all had a project approved in a laboratory budget to only have the funding pulled when an emergency arises elsewhere.”
She added that three forces in particular are shaping those economics: “the consolidation of IDNs, the strengthening of the supply chain, and the federal government.”
Bringing testing closer to the patient
For physician offices, the opportunity to bring more testing closer to the patient is real, but so are the barriers. As IDNs consolidate more physician practices into their networks, standardization and system-level purchasing decisions may make it harder to place testing capabilities in every individual office.
“The IDN consolidations will include more physician offices being added to the portfolio. This is going to make it harder to bring testing into every office,” Malik said. “However, CLIA-waived analyzers with a small footprint (countertop) will always be valuable to the POL market. Otherwise, a multi-specialty clinic will be the best option for offering more testing in the POL setting.”
The practical challenges facing physician offices are considerable. Staffing, reimbursement, capital, space, regulatory requirements and other factors are holding practices back.
“Generally, the physician office does not have a license above CLIA-waived, and staffing is minimal and usually not an MT/MLS with a BS degree. Capital equipment is expensive and most physician offices utilize every square foot to see more patients. I have never been in a physician office that has a room ready for expansion.”
For sales professionals, understanding those limitations is important when discussing laboratory opportunities. And even the definition of efficiency can vary significantly from one customer to another.
“The meaning of efficiency is fluid. It changes from laboratory to laboratory,” Malik said. “In most of the larger laboratories (acute laboratories, independent reference laboratories, and regional reference laboratories), efficiency means all of the above.”
But sales professionals should resist the temptation to assume that the same metrics apply everywhere. “However, depending on the KPIs of the facility, that can change from year to year,” she said. “Never assume you know what efficiency metrics look like from laboratory to laboratory. Every laboratory has its challenges and their individual measure and meaning of efficiency is all that matters.”
Key Takeaways
- AI, molecular testing and supply chain are three major forces reshaping how laboratories operate and make purchasing decisions.
- As health systems consolidate, supply chain is playing a larger role in laboratory purchasing, making clinical value only one part of the sales conversation.
- Reimbursement challenges, particularly for molecular testing, are creating significant financial pressures for some laboratories.
- Sales reps should avoid a one-size-fits-all approach and understand each laboratory’s unique technology, staffing, space, financial and efficiency needs.