Very Brief Blog: Heads Up: Optum Press Release on Lab Waste; Press.

 A "heads-up" brief blog.

On June 22, 2022, Optum issued a press release on new programs to reduce unnecessary lab testing through lab benefit management (LBM).   Find it here:

https://www.unitedhealthgroup.com/newsroom/2022/2022-06-22-optum-launches-lab-benefit-mgmt-solution.html

Note there is a link to Optum's home page for its suite of LBM services:

https://www.optum.com/business/solutions/health-plans/cost-of-care/laboratory-benefit-management.html

See some coverage at the trade journal Health Care Dive, here:

https://www.healthcaredive.com/news/unitedhealth-optum-cut-down-unnecessary-lab-testing/626080/

See one of many articles on LBMs at Dark Report / Dark Daily - here; see a 2019 article by Phillips and Deverka at Heath Affairs, here.

There's some math in the press release, suggesting the program will save "$3B" which is correct if applied to 85M people at $36 per year (PMPY).  Predicted savings are $12-36 PMPY or around $2 PMPM.